Monster no Goshujin-sama - Volume 16 - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Compass and Key

Using the long-range communication device, Gordon had informed me of an unbelievable situation. I immediately gathered my companions and started discussing it.

“This Jinguuji Tomoya fellow betrayed the Holy Church and raided the cathedral’s innermost sanctum?” Gerbera said, her eyes wide in surprise. “And his goal is to destroy the Dimensional Cornerstones? Is that the case?”

“Sir Gordon isn’t the type of person to tell such terrible lies,” Katou said calmly.

“I suppose not,” Gerbera agreed. “If that is in fact true and there was an attack, isn’t it too late to contact us about it from so far away?”

“No, if it were too late already, we wouldn’t even be talking about it,” Lily joined in. “If the Dimensional Cornerstones were destroyed, the world would’ve ended shortly after.”

“I see. That makes sense... So what’s going on?” Gerbera cocked her head in confusion.

“Strictly speaking,” I said, “what’s hidden beneath the cathedral is only the door leading to the Dimensional Cornerstones.”

“Hm? The door?” Gerbera repeated, inclining her head further. “I don’t really get it. How is that different? A door leads to a room, right?”

“Not in this case. The only thing there is the door,” I explained. “It’s a magic tool called the Dimension Door. It doesn’t lead directly to the storage vault. It apparently opens the way to another fabricated world, different from the one we were sent to. You can’t get to the vault without passing through it.”

“So they have even more security. How thorough,” Gerbera said. “I suppose that’s natural when it comes to the existence of the world itself.”

“If entered through proper means, the storage vault is apparently right beyond the door, though,” I added. “When entered any other way, it leads to a dangerous world. It’s said it’ll take even a savior three days to cross it on foot. That is of course based on a savior traveling on their own. Jinguuji is accompanied by other visitors, so they’ll probably get through faster. If we’re unlucky, he might even reach it within the day.”

“It seems we have no time to waste,” Gerbera said, nodding.

“Even inside the Holy Church, the only ones who knew the truth were Harrison and Archbishop Gerd,” I continued. “But Gerd died trying to obstruct Jinguuji Tomoya. Harrison tried to save him, but took a hit when he was already suffering from severe injuries. Kouzu Asahi had noticed Jinguuji’s strange behavior and was with Harrison. He managed to get Harrison back to the church right away and get him treated, but Harrison isn’t going to be moving around anytime soon.”

“Unbelievable...” Gerbera muttered sourly, understanding how bad the situation was. “That means they have no leadership.”

She was right on the mark. The grand cathedral was a mess and no small number of civilians had been caught in the destruction. The imperial capital had been thrown into unprecedented chaos. The head archbishop was dead and the Holy Order’s marshal was out of action. That was extremely bad.

Still, thanks to their sacrifice, we’d been informed of Jinguuji’s goal. If not for that, we would never have learned of his intent to destroy the Dimensional Cornerstones, meaning we would’ve been far too slow to act against him. It was precisely because the world was at risk of ending that Harrison had ignored all pretense and had a message sent to me. Some of this still didn’t make sense, though.

“Harrison is apparently giving Sir Gordon directions from his sickbed,” I said. “They provided the exploration team with limited information about this case and asked for their cooperation.”

“So they’ve already made a request for the exploration team’s help?” Rose asked curiously, a dubious expression on her face. “I don’t understand what Harrison is thinking. If the exploration team is helping, wouldn’t they have more than enough strength as it is? I don’t believe there is any reason for them to go out of their way to ask us for help too.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” I agreed.

Rose had a point. We’d accumulated strength in this world, but we still couldn’t be compared with the exploration team. If the church had managed to borrow their power, they didn’t need to beg an enemy for help too. However, I could tell how serious Harrison was about this.

“We’ll have to ask about that too...” I said.

Just then, the situation changed. I sensed a peculiar wave of mana in front of me. This was the omen of the Fairy Ring, something I was starting to get familiar with.

“I’m back,” Shimazu said, smiling as she appeared out of a distortion in space.

Her expression was a little stiff, likely because she understood the dire calamity we were up against. Three others had come with her: one was a large bald man, the vice marshal of the Holy Order Gordon Cavill; another was a young man with graceful features, the exploration team’s leader Nakajima Kojirou; and the last was a man in a wheelchair, his entire body covered in wounds.

“I didn’t think we’d meet again so soon,” I said to this last man.

“Neither did I,” the marshal of the Holy Order, Harrison Addington, replied hoarsely.

◆ ◆ ◆

The other day, we’d been at each other’s throats. Tension ran through my camp and everyone put themselves on guard. Their wariness was unnecessary, though. Harrison clearly wasn’t in any condition to fight. He’d already been severely wounded when I last saw him, but after his encounter with Jinguuji, his injuries looked fatal. He definitely couldn’t stand up and walk around. His gaunt face was deathly pale and the bags beneath his eyes looked like the shadows of death.

His muscular body wasn’t stirring the slightest bit in his wheelchair. In his current state, we could defeat him with ease. To expose his vulnerability to his sworn foes, he must have been desperate for our help. Only the severe glint in his eyes remained untarnished by his defeat.

“It’s been two days, Majima,” Nakajima said, his voice cheerful enough to make anyone relax just by hearing it. “I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”

He faced me with his usual affable smile.

“I assume you’ve heard what’s going on?” I asked.

“Yeah. That’s why I’m here,” Nakajima answered. “Things being the way they are.”

Harrison had revealed the truth of the world, at least partially, to Nakajima. Considering the gravity of this information, such knowledge had to be kept from as many people as possible. However, if all the people being sent after Jinguuji were unaware of the details, that was a problem in itself.

For example, say Jinguuji told them the truth when they caught up to him. If it didn’t match what they already knew beforehand, it would shake their conviction. Depending on the circumstances, it was possible the whole operation could fail right then and there. At the very least, someone in the exploration team had to know and convince the others. On that point, nobody was more suitable than their leader. Harrison’s judgment on this matter had been correct.

In hindsight, this was convenient for us. If someone on the exploration team knew about the situation between us and the church, the church would no longer be able to misinform them. Iino and Shimazu were with me, so it was unlikely for the exploration team to become our enemies, but it was good to have a guarantee for the future.

In other words, Harrison had decided that my cooperation was necessary enough to vindicate my reputation among the exploration team members. He understood how dangerous the current situation was, after all.

“After hearing of the world’s impending doom, I know we’ve got no time to drag things out,” Nakajima said, a serious look in his eyes. “Besides, my comrade is responsible for this. I don’t know why he’s suddenly planning to destroy the world, but I can’t leave him be. I’ll be the one to stop Jinguuji.”

His words were reassuring. I’d once seen the ability that set him above all others. I didn’t doubt for a second that he would stop the Dragon. He was the savior who wielded the ultimate radiant sword. There was nobody more suitable to be put into action in this situation. That said, it was precisely because I felt this way that I couldn’t understand why Harrison had contacted us. I turned to look at the marshal.

“Let’s cut right to the chase. There’s no time to waste,” he said.

“Yeah, let’s,” I agreed. Now wasn’t the time for idle chatter. “Why did you contact me?”

“Because you’re necessary to stop Jinguuji Tomoya,” Harrison answered.

“That’s what I don’t understand,” I said. “You have the exploration team, don’t you? They should be more than strong enough for this.”

“It’s because fighting is the only thing we’re capable of,” Nakajima said.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“There are those like Shimazu, but they’re exceptions. We’re called saviors here, but we’re basically nothing more than mercenaries.”

Nakajima derided himself casually, but remained relaxed. To him, despite having so much power, those who had the true potential to be saviors were something else entirely. Even during this exchange, I could sense something fundamentally different in him from the warriors who depended entirely on strength.

“Even when we’re only talking about fighting, I’m pretty sure your group covers a wider range of capabilities.”

“Meaning there’s something only we can do?” I asked.

“You catch on quickly. Exactly that.” Nakajima nodded and glanced at Harrison to explain.

“Jinguuji Tomoya stole the Dimension Door that leads to the storage vault and flew away.”

“He took the door...?”

I frowned at the curious expression, then suddenly realized something. A door connected two rooms. There was no point to picking one up and taking it away. However, the Dimension Door was a magic tool. It was possible to carry it around.

“Hang on,” I said. “I thought this was just about chasing Jinguuji into the world beyond the Dimension Door. The door itself is gone too?”

“That’s right,” Harrison confirmed. “We must first search for the Dimension Door. If we at least had a Dimensional Cornerstone, we could use its resonance as a compass to locate the door, but the church is no longer in possession of any.”

“So you can’t even find it?”

“That’s correct, but I’m afraid the situation complicates things further. A Dimensional Cornerstone serves as the key to that world. Without one, it’s impossible to even step foot inside.”

“You’re missing both the compass and the key...? So what can you even do?”

The situation was far worse than I’d imagined. Forget chasing Jinguuji, we couldn’t even track him. If he traveled by foot, Lily or Ayame could follow his scent, but all hope was lost if Jinguuji turned into a dragon and flew through the skies.

“No. There’s still a possibility,” Harrison said, shaking his head. His hazel eyes stared right at me. “Majima Takahiro. Your very existence is the answer.”

“Me...?”

Harrison nodded deeply. “You’re capable of interfering with a Dimensional Cornerstone. Nobody else is capable of such a feat.”

“Well, that’s true, but still...”

A Dimensional Cornerstone had the power to create worlds. The only one capable of interfering with one was the contractor to the Misty Lodge, who possessed the same kind of power. Harrison had apparently found some possibility in that fact.

“It was Lord Gerd’s will,” Harrison said. “Upon his death, he stated that you’re capable of becoming both the compass and the key in the Dimensional Cornerstone’s stead.”

“I can be both the compass and key...?”

I was bewildered by the sudden information, but there was certainty in Harrison’s voice. That was how much he believed in Gerd, and that was how little else he had to rely on.

“Does that ring any bells?” he asked.

“That’s not much to go on...”

Nothing immediately came to mind, but that was when someone unexpected raised their voice.

“Ah. Now that I think of it,” Lily said, tugging on my sleeve. “Master, back when we first arrived in the imperial capital, you sensed some kinda magic tool, remember?”

“Did I?”

“Sure did. You even brought it up.”

Now that she mentioned it, I vaguely remembered talking about something like that with her.

“What’s wrong, Master?”

“Oh, I was just thinking about how the presence of mana here is amazing.”

“Aah, that. It really is. It’s a little surprising, but I guess that’s the Holy Church for you, huh? They’ve got magic tools all over the place.”

When we first arrived in the capital with the Fairy Ring, while being shown around and looking down at the cathedral from a spire, my mind had gotten caught on the presence of mana. At the time, I’d figured it was a reaction to the many magic tools used by the church in their rituals and hadn’t paid it much thought.

“You’re the only one who reacted to it, Master.”

“So...”

She had a point. In terms of simply detecting mana, my companions had far sharper senses than me. The Dimension Door was apparently stored underneath the cathedral. So what if I’d sensed its existence at that time? It was entirely possible. It was worth testing, at least.

“Salvia.”

“Yes, my dear?” Salvia answered, appearing in the air in a cloud of mist.

“Will you lend me your strength?” I asked.

“Of course.”

At the time, we’d been much closer to the cathedral. Salvia’s assistance was essential for me to sense something so far away. I closed my eyes and Salvia wrapped her arms around me from behind. My heightened perception came from my contract with the Misty Lodge. We had terrific affinity when using her magic, allowing us to share sensations and even augment each other’s senses. I heard Nakajima let out a sigh of admiration as I sharpened my perception. It didn’t take all that long.

“That way,” I said, pointing my finger just as I found it.

“That’s the same direction Jinguuji Tomoya flew off to,” Harrison said with a small sigh of relief. “Looks like it’ll be possible to find him.”

“Majima,” Nakajima said, walking up to me and holding out a hand. “We’re planning to chase Jinguuji to protect the world. To that end, we’d like you to participate in the operation.”

“If you can’t bring yourself to forgive me,” Harrison added, “I’m ready to offer you my head.”

He was serious. Harrison was devoted to protecting the world, even at the cost of his own life. The threat we faced was enough to justify a sacrifice, in his mind.

“I don’t need your head,” I said, scowling. “Let’s call a temporary truce. It’s not the time to be fighting when the world is in danger of ending.”

Now that the exploration team’s leader was involved, Harrison was far less dangerous than before. The troops he could move behind the scenes had been annihilated, so the only fear we’d really had was whether they could manipulate the exploration team to be against us. Now that Nakajima knew what he did, that was pretty much impossible. Harrison dying and throwing the world into further chaos would be far more inconvenient for us than the danger of him being around.

Also, while it was possible for us to denounce Harrison right now, seeing that he was defenseless, that wouldn’t accomplish anything beyond satisfying our own egos. After all, Harrison was aware that what he’d done to us had been utterly cruel. He’d understood this so well, but had turned against us because there was something he absolutely had to protect.

Above all else, it hadn’t been his own failures that had driven him to such lengths. The real cause had been the overwhelming influx of visitors and the many problems they’d inflicted on him, especially when considering the precarious reality of the world. In a sense, he was a victim.

Naturally, from the biggest victim’s perspective, the story was entirely different. Mikihiko had told me that if he saw the man, he would immediately slug him, so he wasn’t even participating in this talk. Mikihiko understood how serious the situation was and had made sure not to be here in case his emotions got the better of him and messed up any negotiations. I couldn’t let his consideration go to waste.

“So forget about that and let’s get moving quickly,” I said, taking Nakajima’s hand.

Even now, Jinguuji’s group was getting closer and closer to the Dimensional Cornerstones.

“It’s decided then,” Nakajima said, smiling brightly like he was looking at an equal. “Let’s save the world, Majima.”