Nozomanu Fushi no Boukensha (LN) - Volume 6 - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Secret of Hathara 

“Oh, you’re finally here. Do you know how long I’ve been waiting?” 

As soon as we got to Gharb’s house and knocked on the door, it opened to reveal the mischievous old woman on the other side. She had always looked scary to me, and even now I couldn’t think differently. On some instinctive level, I couldn’t disobey her when I saw that face. That wasn’t to say she looked like a monster or anything. Besides, I was far more fearsome when I was a ghoul. 

“Come now, don’t just stand there. Come in. I have another guest waiting inside,” Gharb continued. 

I couldn’t have guessed who the other guest was. Hathara was small enough that all the villagers treated each other like relatives. Coming over to another house for dinner was a common occurrence, so for most this was nothing unusual. However, Gharb didn’t often have guests, so I began to suspect something. 

We went inside and followed Gharb until we came to a room with a dinner table. There was already a man seated there, and he raised his hand in greeting. “Hey, Rentt, there you are. And you’re the lady with the illusion magic?” 

I recognized him, of course. He was at the banquet as well. His name was Capitan, and he was the head of the village hunters. He was also another one of my teachers. He taught me how to handle hunting knives and bows, how to properly traverse a forest, and how to survive in the wilderness. 

Capitan had two teenage children and was getting along in years, but his skills had yet to diminish. Muscles covered his body like armor, impressive enough to match any swordsman in Maalt. But even without that, he could more than likely best them thanks to his mastery over spirit. 

Spirit was a skill that all adventurers should have, but not all of them did. Capitan, however, could utilize it at an advanced level. All of the hunters he led knew how to use spirit, and while they weren’t as adept as him, they were decent enough. I was probably strong enough at this point that I could beat those hunters, but I didn’t know if I could beat Capitan. I’d never once seen him put up a serious fight; he didn’t need to. This wasn’t the type of man who should be languishing into obscurity in this mountain village, but he seemed content anyway. Maybe he wasn’t that ambitious, but he was a difficult man to understand. He was strange, in any case. 

Lorraine had already met him at the banquet last night. She told me he’d asked a lot of questions about how I fought in the illusion she presented. Just knowing that made me feel uncomfortable. In fact, this whole situation was uncomfortable. Two of my teachers were here—three if you counted Lorraine as my magic teacher. 

“Why are you here, Capitan?” I asked and cocked my head. 

While I referred to Gharb as Teacher, I simply called Capitan by his first name. A long time ago, back when he was teaching me all these skills, I called him Teacher and he said that was a poor fit for him. Maybe he really thought that to some extent, but sometimes it seemed like he was just being shy. Sometimes I’d called him Teacher anyway. It cheered him up, which then made him unspeakably mad. But he was generally a gentle person. 

I still didn’t know why he was here, though. It was bizarre. 

“Just wanted to see how much you’ve grown,” Capitan said. “I’ve been talking with Gharb about you. And that illusion lady there, Lorraine, showed us how you fight too.” 

Lorraine had exaggerated her illusion in more ways than one, but she faithfully recreated the way I fought, at least. She’d even included some minor details. I was a bit stunned by it, but at the same time, I got to see where I could improve, so it was worth the watch. But I didn’t know how to feel about my teachers watching it. 

“Capitan, don’t scare him,” Gharb chided. “Rentt, we’re not here to criticize you; don’t worry about that. We just have some questions.” 

I tried to figure out what they might want to ask, but there were too many possibilities to list. I looked to Lorraine as I decided what to say. I didn’t know if I’d be able to hide anything from these two in the first place. 

“But not just yet,” Gharb continued. “It would be rude to make you do all the talking, so we decided to tell you two about the secret of this village. We told Ingo that we would, of course.” 

“What secret? Not to insult Hathara, but I thought it was just a small village in the mountains. You and Capitan, though, have skills the likes of which I’ve hardly even seen in Maalt.” 

I had thought it odd that so many such people were in a rural village, but it wasn’t impossible. There were more stories than I could count of Platinum-class adventurers who suddenly retired one day and returned to the village they grew up in. A fair number of similar tales about military generals and court magicians existed too. You could go to almost any destitute village and find an incredibly distinguished person walking around in ordinary clothes. Because of that, I’d always assumed there was nothing so strange about Hathara. But the way Gharb talked, it sounded like there was some greater reason behind it all. 

I looked at Lorraine, and she stared back with an expression that said she knew something was weird about this place all along. She had thought something was off the whole time we’d been here. 

“Yes, you’re correct for the most part,” Gharb replied. “Correct with regards to most of the villagers, rather. You never thought this was any more than an ordinary village, did you? Well, maybe you thought it was just a bit out of the ordinary, but nothing more than that, I’m sure.” 

“I did think you and Capitan seemed out of place, but that was about it.” Their talent was great enough that they’d be highly sought after in Maalt too. Gharb would be valued as a doctor, while Capitan would be valued as a warrior. And yet they stayed here. I often thought about this during my adventures in Maalt. 

“So from the sound of it, this really isn’t a regular village?” Lorraine asked. 

Capitan answered, “No, you can say it’s a regular village now. Like the old lady said, that’s what it is to most of the villagers. That’s how it’s always been, and that’s how it’ll always be. But to me, Gharb, and Ingo, it’s a bit different.” 

The three people Capitan listed were effectively in charge of the village. Such a small population didn’t need a council or proper governmental roles like Maalt did. These three were the ones to consult if there was a problem, and as far as the villagers were concerned, they were the ones who made the decisions. Ingo was included because he was the mayor, of course; Gharb was viewed as the most knowledgeable person in the village; and Capitan was the leader of the strongest group of fighters. 

And to these three, this was no ordinary village. I wondered what that was supposed to mean. So did Lorraine, naturally. I didn’t expect it to have anything to do with why I became undead, but maybe it would explain why that shrine was treated the way it was. I’d lived most of my life in this village, and the idea that it had a secret tickled my curiosity. 

Both Lorraine and I were curious by nature. If we weren’t, we wouldn’t be adventurers. An adventurer was someone who’d do anything, including risking their own life, to learn even one of the world’s secrets. Now that we knew this village had one, leaving before hearing the rest of the story wasn’t an option. 

“So, what is Hathara to the three of you?” I asked, getting straight to the heart of the matter. 

“I could tell you here and now, but you wouldn’t really get a feel for what I’m talking about,” Gharb said. “I’d like to talk about this more tomorrow. There’s a place I’d like the four of us to go. That’s why I told you to come over after you’d looked at the shrine, but now it’s gotten dark. It’d be dangerous to go at this time of night. Tonight, you can just have dinner here. Come over again tomorrow morning, and I’ll tell you everything.” 

The old woman smiled. 

“What in the world does she know? I can’t wait to find out,” Lorraine said, enjoying herself. 

It was now the next morning, and we were on the way to Gharb’s house. I felt much the same as her. Seemingly ordinary villages that hid a special secret had been the topic of stories for ages. Only a select few were lucky enough to go on adventures like that, while average adventurers like us would go through life without encountering anything so exciting. But now it was happening, on this visit back to my hometown no less. There was no reason not to be excited. 

“Neither can I,” I said, “but I’m impressed they were able to hide it all this time. And not just from me but from the whole village.” 

This secret was known only to Gharb, Capitan, and Ingo, according to them. If it was such a major secret, then I had to respect them for being able to keep it for so long. Maybe I hadn’t noticed because I left when I was young and it had been a while, but Riri and Fahri spent almost all of their time here, and they still didn’t know. It was just amazing. Either that or the secret wasn’t that big a deal. That wouldn’t be much fun, though, so I hoped it was. 

“They managed to hide it, yes, but they made it sound like it wasn’t something especially relevant to the villagers in the modern day regardless. It may be no more than they’ve never needed to bring it up,” Lorraine guessed, though neither of us knew whether she was correct just yet. 

I looked straight ahead and saw Gharb’s house. “Oh, we’re here. Hey!” I shouted. 

Waiting at the door, the old woman and the robust man gazed at us. Gharb was wearing a coat she only put on for long outings, and Capitan was in his hunting gear. They were both clearly ready to go somewhere. Capitan even had a hunting knife at his hip, a bow across his shoulders, and a quiver on his back. But we were also equipped heavily enough to travel outside the village. I’d worn lighter clothing for most of my visit, but now I was in adventuring gear. I had my sword with me, and Lorraine had her wand and dagger. 

“All right, everyone’s here,” Gharb said, looking at my outfit. “That looks good on you, Rentt. You’ve grown to look the part of an adventurer.” 

She meant the robe, the mask, and the sword, all things that made me look suspicious. I had told Gharb about how I couldn’t take the mask off, but everyone else jumped to the conclusion that this was the fashion in Maalt. I prayed to Viro that if they ever went to Maalt to go sightseeing, they wouldn’t all walk around wearing masks. Then I thought I heard someone say that was a silly prayer and not what praying was for, but maybe it was my imagination. 

“I’m not choosing to look like this,” I answered. “The robe is surprisingly comfortable and convenient, though, so I treasure it.” 

“Convenient how?” Capitan asked. 

I couldn’t ignore a question from one of my teachers. I didn’t always answer honestly, but I couldn’t not respond. 

“It’s stronger than your average metal armor, and it deflects poison. It doesn’t get dirty either,” I said, starting to wonder how much it would be worth if I sold it. It was hard to imagine life without it now, so I wouldn’t do that, but it was an interesting question. If I met the God of Appraisal, maybe I could ask him to appraise the robe too. 

“Huh, mind if I shoot an arrow at it?” Capitan asked with amusement. 

I quickly shook my head. “Yes, I’d definitely mind that! You might actually be able to pierce through it!” 

I didn’t just say that to flatter him. When he was serious about firing an arrow, it always pierced its target. The bow itself wasn’t especially strong, so he had the power of spirit to thank for that. Charging swords, spears, and other handheld weapons with spirit required a fair amount of training, but it was an achievable goal. Doing the same with a weapon that left contact with the body, however, was exceedingly difficult. But Capitan could do it. His arrows could even break boulders. Even with my robe, there was no guarantee I’d survive. It would probably be fine, but it wasn’t worth the risk. 

Capitan looked disappointed by my refusal. “Oh well. Either way, let’s do a little sparring later. I want to see what you’ve got.” 

This conversation was taking a turn for the worse. I honestly didn’t want to have to deal with that. Capitan was one of the people who taught me to fight, after all. I learned most of my swordsmanship from the adventurer who came to the village, but I learned my footwork and such from Capitan. My newfound physical abilities were probably enough for me to win, but I couldn’t say for sure. I’d never seen Capitan when he got serious. 

In any case, I couldn’t refuse to spar. A pupil has to obey their master. “Fine,” I said with a sigh. “Later. So where are we going?” 

“The northern forest,” Gharb answered. “To its deepest depths.” 

I was a bit shocked. Nobody was supposed to enter the northern forest. It was teeming with monsters so powerful that even Hathara’s hunters steered clear. 

“Is that why you’re both fully equipped?” I asked. 

It made sense. I’d never seen Gharb fight before, but she was probably a top-rate magician, according to Lorraine. Capitan was also a top-rate warrior, in my opinion. They’d be more readily able to enter a forest that was off-limits to the villagers of Hathara. But for some reason, they seemed a bit tense today. It was just that dangerous, presumably. 

“Well, yes,” Gharb said. “Stay alert, you two. This is no ordinary forest. Now let’s go.” 

Gharb led the way, so we began to follow behind her. 

Capitan chopped a goblin’s head clean off with his hunting knife. Three other goblins rushed at him with rusty daggers, trying to take him off guard, but he sidestepped and sliced through them all. Not far from him, Gharb was launching blades of wind at a giant spider monster called a gadol akavish, severing its legs. The spider tried to attack Gharb with its remaining legs, but she was nimble for her age and dodged every one of them. She was a magician and presumably knew physical enhancement techniques, so it wasn’t that unusual, but seeing an old woman jumping around like a monkey was somewhat frightening. She did it all while unleashing spells, too. Most magicians fought more like stationary cannons, but Gharb was fundamentally different. She fought like a magic swordsman or a combat mage. Her punches seemed like they might actually be stronger than her magic, scarily enough. 

“We’re the adventurers here, and we didn’t even get the chance to do our jobs,” Lorraine muttered some time later, after the battle had ended. We were surrounded by monster corpses. 

Ever since I was little, I was told to stay out of the northern forest, and it turned out to be every bit as threatening as it was built up to be. Few forests had so many monsters, except in the event of a surge or overflow. There were plenty of other territories that the world generally considered dangerous, and those might also be different if I were to enter them, but I never knew there was a place like this near my hometown. 

“How does Hathara survive with all these monsters nearby?” I whispered. 

Gharb heard me and said, “Not a problem. These monsters won’t come to Hathara.” 

That was reassuring if true, but I didn’t know what proof she had. I knew that most strong monsters had their own turf they never left, but there were also plenty of goblins, slimes, and other common low-level monsters here. It didn’t make sense for them to only operate within a certain area. They survived on their reproductive abilities rather than their strength, so they always tried to aggressively expand to other locations. The idea of sticking to one place was foreign to them. Goblins did sometimes have their own settlements, but if they were hostile to humans, they’d try to conquer a human village and move in after it reached a certain size. Slimes were more simple than that. They just constantly multiplied and went everywhere. As such, I would think that their presence here meant they could easily find their way to Hathara. 

But while Gharb and Capitan appeared to understand our questions, they just kept advancing deeper into the forest. They seemed to be implying that they would tell us when we got there. Lorraine and I looked at each other, shook our heads futilely, and continued to follow along. 

“Here we are,” Gharb said after some hours of walking around the forest, right around when I was starting to get fed up. 

“Is this a fortress? It looks pretty old,” Lorraine whispered. 

It was indeed, by all appearances, some kind of fortress. It was like a small castle made of stone, but the years had not been kind to it. Some parts of it were in great disrepair. It was also overgrown with plants, covering almost its entire surface with greenery. If you were to gaze in this direction from Hathara, you’d think it was nothing but part of the forest. But there was certainly a fortress here. 

I never knew there was anything like this near Hathara, so it came as a bit of a shock. “Do you think this is the secret of Hathara?” I asked. 

“Probably so. I’m curious as to when it was built, but it doesn’t look new, I can say that,” Lorraine replied. 

To be honest, we were disappointed that this just seemed to be some ancient ruin near the village. It was a reasonably significant secret from a historical perspective, but you could find ruins like these anywhere if you did a little searching. Some places even used their ancient ruins as tourist attractions. Considering that, I didn’t think this secret was that impressive. Unless there was something special about these ruins. 

Noticing our doubts, Gharb and Capitan walked further. “This way. Don’t panic,” they said. 

It sounded like there was something else after all. I started to think that maybe I wouldn’t be let down. 

We entered the fortress. It looked as old as it did on the outside, the collapsed parts drawing the most attention. But it also looked like it had been cleaned up to some degree. There was enough floor space for people to walk around, which was a bit unnatural. My best guess was that Gharb and Capitan frequented this place and cleaned it up themselves. It wasn’t entirely clear, but most of the villagers didn’t come here, so that was the only possibility that came to mind. 

We walked a while longer and arrived at a spacious area. “What is this place?” I asked. 

“Most likely an audience room for a king, lord, or other prestigious person,” Lorraine explained. “Perhaps in ancient times a powerful family lived in this region. Something like that.” 

In the back of the room was a raised section of the floor upon which sat a stone chair. Presumably it would have been covered in cloth in the past, but now the stone surface was exposed. All things faded with time. Whoever it was that once wielded power from this room, they weren’t even remembered by history. Their role was now held by Gharb, Capitan, and Ingo, as the leaders of the village. However, I sensed no reverence for this room from either of the two who attended us. 

“Over here. It’s this room,” they said and proceeded into a hallway next to the throne. This room apparently didn’t matter. 

We followed along, and when we reached our destination, we were shocked. 

“It couldn’t be. Why is this here?” Lorraine murmured, staring at the drawing covering the entire floor. It was an enormous magic circle that glowed with a pale blue light. I recognized this magic circle, and as a magician, Lorraine did as well. “It’s a teleportation circle,” she groaned. 

Teleportation circles were almost exclusively found in dungeons, so naturally there was no reason for one to be here. Nobody would have known how to draw it. Well, perhaps that wasn’t necessarily true. They could be copied by following a diagram. In fact, that was easy to do. But even if you copied it perfectly, the magic circle wouldn’t activate. There was just something about how they worked that we didn’t know. As such, new teleportation circles could only be found in dungeons. Some dungeons also changed their internal structure with each passing day, and in the depths of those dungeons, teleportation circles could be created or destroyed. 

But there was no dungeon here. This building was likely a man-made fortress, so Lorraine and I had to wonder how a teleportation circle could be here. 

Gharb and Capitan looked at our shocked faces with satisfied smiles. 

“Looks like you’re surprised,” Gharb said. “After you came here dressed like that and with this girlfriend accompanying you, and after she used that illusion magic and all, you’ve been the ones surprising us for this entire visit. Now it feels like we’ve gotten back at you somehow, so that’s nice.” 

Capitan nodded. “I was worried you might say this was nothing special in Maalt. We don’t know what sort of magic research is going on in the big city, so they could have discovered how teleportation circles work by now.” 

There was a lot I could have commented on in those last two statements, but after thinking about it a bit, I settled on asking the most pertinent question. “Why is this here? No human could have made this, and they certainly aren’t in any city in Yaaran. You wouldn’t even find them in significantly larger cities.” 

By that, I was thinking of Lorraine’s hometown. If the secrets of teleportation circles had been uncovered, Lorraine would know about it. Her shock could only mean that not even the Lelmudan Empire knew how to create them. The empire was centered around its military, however, and the military had classified information that a simple scholar like Lorraine wouldn’t be privy to. But according to her, they would try to conquer the continent if they could, and teleportation circles would make it possible for them to send troops and supplies anywhere at any time. If they had that technology, Yaaran would have been destroyed long ago. Not that the Lelmudan Empire was the only advanced country in the world, but they were certainly among the most advanced, and not even their most cutting-edge research could explain teleportation circles. 

“We can’t make them either, mind you,” Gharb answered slowly. “But this is here because the theory that humans can’t create teleportation circles is partially wrong.” 

“What does that?” I started to ask, but Gharb cut me off. 

“Well, just enter it and you’ll figure it out. I’ll go on ahead. Come, Capitan,” she said and dragged him onto the teleportation circle with her. It began to glow, and the two of them gradually faded away until the last remaining light dissolved into the air, leaving only me and Lorraine. 

We looked at each other. 

“I know I say a lot of things are fascinating, but this is really fascinating, Rentt. What is with your village?” Lorraine said, more excited than usual. Her scholar’s spirit must have been fired up. 

I understood the feeling since I was pretty thrilled myself. This was absolutely nuts. I figured the village had some secrets, but this one was world-class. It was like something legendary adventurers would come across in an old story. My life of going to gloomy dungeons and trying desperately to vanquish a dozen boring monsters every day felt far behind me. Which it actually was, but I digress. 

“I don’t know, but I guess we should see where this takes us,” I said, looking at the teleportation circle. I had used countless teleportation circles in dungeons, and I was sure that Lorraine had too. But seeing one outside of a dungeon was a first for me. Of course, it would be my first time using one outside a dungeon too, so that was scary in a number of ways. I had no idea where I’d end up or if I could even make it back here after. Gharb and Capitan didn’t think twice about using it, so it was probably fine, but my instincts told me this was dangerous. My old habit of being overly cautious was showing itself. I felt like I’d been relatively bold as of late, but I was still a cowardly, low-ranking adventurer at heart. 

Lorraine, however, felt differently. “If it were dangerous, they wouldn’t have gone off without us like that. I’m sure nothing will happen. All right, Rentt, let’s go,” she said and yanked me by the arm onto the teleportation circle. 

Personally, I still wanted time to mull it over, but it was too late now. She was right, though. Logically, there was no danger here. There was no reason there would be, but I was still a tiny bit scared. It was sort of like looking down from a tall cliff with a safety rope around your waist. You know you’ll be safe, but it’s still terrifying. 

But now I was on it, so there was no going back. Lorraine, by contrast, looked eager to see what would happen. Then the magic circle generated a torrent of light, and we disappeared. 

When I next opened my eyes, I heard Gharb teasing me. “Oh, there you are. I thought maybe you’d chickened out.” 

“I was scared the first time I got brought here too,” Capitan said, chiding Gharb. “You’re the only one who wouldn’t be freaked out by this.” 

I looked around and was relieved to see them both unharmed. Lorraine was present and fine as well. The teleportation circle had apparently worked. Not that Gharb and Capitan would have had us use it if it didn’t. 

“But what in the world is this place?” Lorraine asked, looking around curiously. “It’s dark. Are these walls? Is this some cave somewhere?” 

I checked my surroundings too, and it did appear to be a cave. The glossy walls of stone were a bit moist. “Oh, but it’s bright over there,” I said when I stared off into the distance and saw some light, presumably shining in from the exit. Maybe the teleportation circle was hidden in a cave to make it hard to find. That would explain why it had never been discovered. 

While we were thinking to ourselves, Gharb and Capitan looked at each other and grinned. “Well, we’re almost to our destination,” Gharb said. “Come along.” 

We still didn’t know where we were going, but all we could do was follow them. At least we knew it wasn’t dangerous. 

“The way Gharb is leading us through this cave makes me feel like we’re being guided to the afterlife,” Lorraine joked as she looked at Gharb’s back. From behind she looked kind of like the Grim Reaper, a denizen of the afterlife who invited the living to places unknown. Walking next to her, Capitan could have been a reaper knight, one of the Grim Reaper’s minions. It was easy to see where Lorraine got that idea, especially when they wouldn’t give us a single hint about where we were going. But they obviously didn’t want us dead, so that wasn’t worth worrying about. Hopefully. 

I momentarily questioned my faith when we neared the light from the exit I saw earlier. I heard a gust of wind, and then something massive appeared before us. 

“What?!” Lorraine yelled and grabbed her staff. Similarly, I drew my sword. But strangely, Gharb and Capitan did no such thing. In fact, they walked right up to the thing that approached us. 

“There, there,” Gharb said and reached out her hand to stroke its head. 

I couldn’t believe it. But however unbelievable it may have been, Gharb and Capitan reacted as if nothing was unusual. From the look of it, we were wrong to draw our weapons. We slowly put them away. 

“Hey, Teacher, what is that?” I asked, inquiring of the creature Gharb was petting. It was far taller than a human, at least five meters in height, and its whole body was covered in black stripes. The creature looked just like a massive tiger. Its mouth was large enough to easily devour not only Gharb’s head but her entire body. And yet it was playing with her like a cat. It seemed to enjoy the petting, and its eyes expressed loyalty to Gharb. 

“Can’t you see? It’s a tiger.” 

“Are you kidding me?” I complained, unable to hide my frustration. 

Gharb laughed. “Sorry, just joking around. Of course it’s not just a tiger. This is a powerful monster called a shahor melechnamer. You’d know more about that than I do, I would think.” 

She meant that as adventurers, we should be more informed about monsters. I could immediately tell what type of monster it was when I saw it, so she was right about that. But that wasn’t what I meant to ask. I wanted to know why it acted like Gharb’s pet. Shahor melechnamers weren’t something you could find in any old monster habitat, and a single one of them was strong enough to take on an entire army. Vanquishing one would be a job for a Platinum-class adventurer, at the very least, but ideally they would need to be Mithril-class. That’s the level of monster we were looking at here. For Gharb to just go up and treat it like a typical cat, she deserved to be called crazy. 

“It’s not the type of monster that I’m confused about,” I said. “Why isn’t it attacking you? These aren’t exactly common pets.” 

Monster tamers could tame many types of monsters, but they were generally ones that had a history of becoming friendly with humans. Not all monsters could be tamed. It was only once in every few centuries that someone would miraculously tame a powerful monster, and those people were showered in accolades. If Gharb was a monster tamer who tamed a shahor melechnamer, she would be considered legendary. 

“It’s not really me that it likes. It’s my blood,” Gharb said. “Come over here, Rentt.” 

I really, really didn’t want to, but Gharb wouldn’t listen. I stood stiffly in place until she dragged me up to the monster. I looked at it again now that I was up close. It was enormous. And horrifying. From its eyes I got the sense that it was intelligent, which made it all the more fearsome. This monster wasn’t here for no reason. It had some objective. I just hoped it didn’t want to gather us all in one place so it could eat us. But if that were what it wanted, it probably would have done so already. 

To my surprise, the shahor melechnamer’s attitude didn’t change at all when it looked at me. Rather, it nuzzled against me with its head. Its fur felt nicer than I expected. It also purred. Monster or not, it was still a cat, I guess. But I still didn’t know why it liked me so much when we had only just met. Gharb said it liked her blood, so I assumed that meant Hatharan blood. I was a vampire now, though. Maybe some of my Hatharan blood still flowed through my body regardless. In any case, the monster didn’t seem to be a threat. 

I didn’t know how Lorraine would react though. Maybe she’d be unexpectedly frightened by this huge tiger, or maybe she’d observe it as calmly as ever. Curious, I looked behind me, and the look on Lorraine’s face defied expectations. It was like a mix of confusion and astonishment, a reasonable response to this particular monster. But still, something was a bit strange. It didn’t seem like she was reacting to seeing a powerful monster. 

“Hey, Lorraine, what’s wrong?” I asked. “You’re acting weird.” 

“A shahor melechnamer, an ancient fortress, the teleportation circles, the cave... Oh, nevermind, it couldn’t be what I’m thinking,” she muttered and shook her head. “Sorry, I kind of lost my cool. I’m just stunned by everything we’ve seen.” 

It sounded like she’d noticed some connection between all these things, but I didn’t know what. I decided to ask her later. 

“Teacher, Capitan! Can Lorraine get close to it too?” I asked from afar. Lorraine wasn’t from Hathara, so I thought the monster might attack her. 

“It won’t hurt her as long as we’re around,” Gharb said. “And by we, I’m including you, Rentt. Nothing to worry about.” She beckoned to Lorraine. 

If I were her, I wouldn’t have so readily believed that, but Lorraine had guts. She approached the shahor melechnamer and reached out her hand. The beast turned to look at Gharb for a moment. When the old woman nodded, the monster bowed its head to Lorraine. It even purred when she petted it. It seemed as long as a villager was present, this creature wouldn’t harm any humans. I didn’t know if it was commanded to behave this way or it was just in its nature, but that wasn’t important for the time being. 

“Is this the village secret? The fact that you have this pet?” I asked. 

Gharb shook her head. “No, there’s something else that more deserves to be called a secret. This just came here to greet us. Let’s go,” she said and walked off toward the exit to the cave. 

We were almost to the exit now, at which point I was sure we’d see some outdoor scenery. But I was wrong. 

“Is this a city?” I wondered aloud. My words echoed quietly. 

What we saw appeared to be some sort of city, but there were no signs of human life anywhere. These were probably ruins, and particularly big ones at that. Several cities the size of Maalt could have occupied this space. There were buildings as far as the eye could see. But somehow we didn’t seem to be on the surface, because for as vast as this place was, there was still a ceiling. The outer walls were made of stone like those of the cave we just came from, and the ceiling was likely the same. 

I could see lights up there. They twinkled softly like stars in the sky. There were countless lights in the city as well, from what I could only guess were magic lamps, illuminating the whole area. It looked so grand you wouldn’t think the city was dead. If this place were discovered, it could easily become a popular destination for couples thanks to the romantic feel of it all. If this was the secret they were showing us, I couldn’t really complain. The idea that a small village was hiding something so remarkable was awe-inspiring in more ways than one. 

“What in the world is this place?” I asked. 

“A city,” Gharb answered. 

“Oh, come on.” 

“Don’t look at me like that; I’m kidding with you. It’s true, though. This is a city. An ancient one destroyed long ago. I’m sure you’ve both heard of the Ancient Kingdom.” 

“Yes, of course.” That name was famous among adventurers. It was a country that might have possessed the technology to make magic bags. It was a highly advanced and prosperous nation, and it was shrouded in mystery. We called it the Ancient Kingdom, but its real name was long forgotten. Remnants of its advanced technology existed throughout the world to be discovered once in a blue moon, indirectly proving that such a civilization must have existed, but that was all we knew. I didn’t know what that had to do with this, though. I could guess, but I had no way to be sure everything Gharb said was true. I waited for her to elaborate. 

Gharb paused before she spoke again. “This city was built by the descendants of the Ancient Kingdom. And the citizens of Hathara, including you, Rentt, are descended from them. That’s the secret of the village,” she said in a terribly casual manner. 

This was a pretty shocking revelation, to say the least. I thought I just lived in one of a million villages, but it turned out my origins were the thing of legend. A lot of villages might claim something like this, but here we had explicit proof. Technology capable of creating a city this size underground wasn’t exactly widely available. It could be done in the modern day with enough resources and manpower, but this was built far in the past. Not only that, but they made magic lamps that were still running to this day, which meant there was presumably some other functional technology leftover too. 

I had plenty of questions, but Lorraine spoke before I could, delivering something even more surprising. “It was built by descendants from the Ancient Kingdom? Certainly not. This is Good King Felt’s dungeon city, isn’t it?!” 

“Lorraine, what the hell are you talking about?” I asked, as the person least likely to understand what was going on. Neither Gharb nor Capitan seemed at all perturbed by what Lorraine said, so they must have known what she meant. 

“I’ve told you about it before, haven’t I? It’s not a city with a dungeon around it but a city inside a dungeon,” Lorraine answered, reminding me. 

“Wasn’t that in your homeland, though? Meaning it would be in the Lelmudan Empire?” After I said that, I remembered that we came here by teleportation circle. Then I got a vague idea as to what had happened. 

Lorraine noticed that I’d figured it out and went on. “That’s right. I’ve seen this all before. This underground dungeon with a ravishing ancient city, the monsters who attack all trespassers, and even their ruler, the shahor melechnamer. This is a dungeon in the Lelmudan Empire known as the Old Insect Dungeon. We’re on the sixtieth floor, also known as Good King Felt’s Dungeon City.” 

I was still at a complete loss, but it looked like I was the only one. Lorraine did seem surprised as well, but since she had seen this place before, she wasn’t as shocked as me. I didn’t even know who to ask about what. I could at least think of what my first question should be, and maybe I knew who best to ask. 

“Was she right about all that?” I asked Gharb and Capitan. 

“We wouldn’t know what names they have for it outside of our small village,” Capitan said, “but we’re inside a dungeon within the Lelmudan Empire’s territory. That much is certain. That makes Good King Felt our ancestor, apparently. Pretty interesting, eh?” 

I suppose it was interesting. Knowing that I had descended from a legendary figure was a bit exciting. 

“Why do you assume that?” Lorraine asked them. 

“Well, that teleportation circle led here, after all,” Gharb said jokingly. But that seemed to actually be their reasoning, so maybe it wasn’t a joke. 

“The Empire found that teleportation circle too, but they couldn’t activate it,” Lorraine said. “They probably still can’t. How did you do it?” 

This was the first I’d heard of this, so I asked Lorraine my own question. “They knew about that teleportation circle already?” 

“Yes. Unfortunately, this is the sixtieth floor, so even getting this far is a trial. And once you do make it here, you have to deal with the shahor melechnamer and all the other powerful monsters prowling the city. Scholars have tried to investigate it before, but they didn’t survive very long, so little progress has ever been made. I know this city by its appearance, and I know of the teleportation circle and how it doesn’t work, but that’s the extent of my knowledge.” 

It sounded like they couldn’t research the teleportation circle whether they wanted to or not. Maybe I could think of a few ways they could try, but it didn’t help that this was also a national secret. That would limit their options for researching it. It was likely a complicated situation. 

At any rate, Gharb answered Lorraine’s question. “Now, the teleportation circle is similar to the shahor melechnamer in that our blood is the key. That’s all there is to it.” 

“Your blood is the key? I’m not aware of any technology that can do that. Is it similar to how a specific person’s mana can be registered to a wand? Maybe you could identify somebody’s bloodline similarly,” Lorraine murmured to herself. But rather than mull it over, she seemed to think that asking questions would prove more beneficial. “So was I able to use the teleportation circle because I came with Rentt?” she asked Gharb. 

“That’s absolutely right. I don’t know how they did it, but it seems the Ancient Kingdom had technology that made it possible. They could make powerful monsters defend their city, too.” 

I looked at the gigantic cat lazing about and saw no other explanation aside from what Gharb suggested. But something didn’t add up. 

“How did such a powerful nation, and a city that inherited that power, get destroyed? And why did their descendants have to go to the outskirts of such a small country?” Lorraine asked, coming to the same conclusion I had. 

If they really did have the advanced technology and great power they were purported to have, then they shouldn’t have had to leave. Even powerful monsters weren’t a threat to them, so I didn’t see how they could have been brought to ruin. But to begin with, Good King Felt had fled from some other country and wandered the world until he found his way here. 

“It is strange, isn’t it?” Gharb said. “I wonder the same thing. And I’m sure the Hatharans who knew about this place before us had the same questions. But we don’t have any answers.” 

“Have you never tried to find out?” I asked. Humans were curious creatures, for better and for worse. Maybe a woman of Gharb’s age wasn’t going to be quite so interested in her surroundings, but for most people, learning such a big secret would only make you want to find out more. Even if Gharb and Capitan were exceptions to that, there must have been plenty of Hatharans in the past who kept this secret. I found it hard to believe that none of them ever tried looking deeper. 

“It’s said that long ago, a few people tried to learn more,” Capitan answered. “One such story is only told to the head of the hunters every generation. I think you’ve got a similar story, right, old lady?” 

Gharb nodded. “Yes, a story passed down between what we call the medicine woman nowadays, but we were once called the chief magician. The mayor once had a different name as well. They used to be called the king.” 

“If we’re bringing that up, then the head hunter used to be called the knight captain, apparently. Considering you can trace the roots of our village back to this place, it makes sense. We’re the descendants of a dead country. I don’t know if it’s worth taking pride in, though. In the end, we’re just an ordinary village,” Capitan said with a laugh. 

After seeing all this, it seemed absurd to call Hathara an ordinary village, but if you looked at it without knowing this secret, it certainly was. I’d always thought so, anyway. All of the villagers aside from these two and my foster father must have seen it that way as well. Once I had left it, I felt like there was something strange about my village, but I didn’t think much about it beyond that. 

But if they insisted on calling Hathara an ordinary village, why did they bother to bring us here? We could’ve gone on thinking the village was normal if they hadn’t told us about this. The village elders and leaders were supposed to keep this a secret, so this felt unusual. They said they wanted to unveil this in exchange for asking me something, but this seemed like far too big a secret to reveal. 

“Like Capitan just said, Hathara’s just an ordinary village now,” Gharb said. “Only three of us know the secret anymore, so that’s proof enough of that. You see, I thought it’d be best to make it into an ordinary village.” 

“What do you mean?” I asked. 

“I’ve told you how back in the day, the village was a lot more violent, haven’t I? That was because of this place. The chief magician, knight captain, and king are the only roles still left over from the old days, but back when I was young, there was also the chancellor, the minister of justice, and the priest. This was before Capitan or Ingo were even born, back in the previous mayor’s day. There were six of us who knew about this city, and we were divided on whether to try and make use of it. The chancellor, minister of justice, and priest asserted that we could use this secret in a way that drew more people to Hathara, expanded the village into a great city, and brought more wealth to the villagers. The other three understood their position, but they weren’t eager to approve, from what I heard. After all, this was a secret that had been kept for ages. They didn’t want their generation to be the one that exposed it, so that was one reason, but they also feared the potential danger. You can see why, looking at this monster here,” Gharb said and petted the shahor melechnamer. It purred like any old cat, but if someone were to actually fight it, it would be deadly. If a small village possessed such strength, somebody would inevitably try to use it. I presumed that was the danger she referred to. 

“Were you worried someone outside the village would try to use it?” I asked. 

“Yes. There are powerful countries, organizations, and even individuals out there. This monster, this city, and this teleportation circle could all serve as great weapons, but we’re simple villagers. There was a strong fear that we would ultimately be taken advantage of and the village would be left to rot. The two sides of this argument never ended up coming to a compromise before it all came to an end.” 

“How did it end?” 

“Well, as I’m sure you’ve noticed with me and Capitan, everyone with a special role in Hathara inherited special skills. We could all use magic or spirit or the like. These are no ordinary abilities, either. We learned powerful skills passed down since ancient times. The chancellor’s side never changed their views, and in the end, they tried to get their way by force. They went up against the opposing side, and the chief magician, knight captain, and king came out victorious. Which is to say the medicine woman, head hunter, and mayor, in today’s terms. But there were casualties. The medicine woman was heavily injured, and the head hunter would never hunt again. The mayor fared better, but even he was wounded all over. The chancellor, minister of justice, and priest all died, bringing the conflict to a close.” 

That was an even bloodier story than I had anticipated. The idea that this village was the site of such a violent battle left me speechless. 

Gharb smiled. “Well, that was a long time ago. So, that all happened in an effort to protect this place, when it came down to it. But I was thinking it’s time to stop all that. I’m leaving this city in your hands.” 

“After all the trouble you went through to protect it?” 

“Well, the situation has changed. Lorraine here is from the Lelmudan Empire, isn’t she? And they know about this place. They found out about it after the conflict in the village, though they still don’t seem to know about its connection to Hathara.” 

Lorraine nodded. “I’ve heard that the Lelmudan Empire discovered it about fifty years ago, but they haven’t found out much. Still, these are ancient ruins, and it’s long been said that there must be useful magic items around here. It’s been too difficult to explore so far, but trouble has been brewing in the Empire as of late. I hear they’ve reevaluated the significance of these ruins and are proposing new plans to send investigation teams periodically.” 

“Well, that’s the thing,” Gharb said. “The chancellor’s group said we should reveal the secret after one of them witnessed somebody coming down here. They wanted the glory of unveiling it to the world before somebody else did, I imagine. But many people had come to the city in the past, according to our legends. I thought they only used that sighting as an excuse, but it has turned out to be a problem. If the Empire is going to use the full might of their nation to investigate this city, it won’t be safe to keep treating it as we always have. I want somebody who’s quicker on their feet to watch over it, and you two are just perfect.” 

“You want us to watch over it?” I said, unsure of how to react. Lorraine looked conflicted as well, as was to be expected. This seemed like a bit much to be leaving in the hands of a couple of people. 

Capitan saw what I was thinking. “We’re not saying you have to be the only ones to take care of the place, or that we want nothing at all to do with it anymore; nothing like that. It’s more that we want some new recruits to the team, you could say.” It was like he didn’t want it to sound like a demand, but if so, I didn’t see why they needed to make this request in the first place. 

“Will it not be possible to continue things as you have been?” I asked. 

“It could be done, but it’d be nice to have you two join in. There’ll be something in it for you, too,” Capitan said. 

I had no idea what benefit they could offer. Lorraine might appreciate the chance to research the city without having to worry about monsters, but that probably wasn’t what he meant. 

“Isn’t that right, Gharb?” he said, turning to the old woman. 

“Yes, well, it’ll be easiest to show them. Shall we go have a look?” Gharb said. She climbed onto the shahor melechnamer’s back and looked down upon us. “What are you doing? Get on.” 

Capitan had started to climb on before she’d even said anything. It looked like we would have to ride it. I was a bit reluctant to, but admittedly I’d gotten plenty used to the creature already. Lorraine and I looked at each other and shrugged. Then we got on the shahor melechnamer’s back. It was big enough to hold all four of us easily, and it was nice and soft as well. It was so pleasant that I almost wanted to sleep, and I seldom felt sleepy. But if I actually did, that would have been a disaster. We were riding this monster somewhere else, so I most likely would have fallen off. 

“Now let’s go,” Gharb said, giving some orders to the shahor melechnamer. It smoothly got into motion, and in a matter of seconds, it reached a frightening speed. 

It rushed outside the cave, which is to say into the dungeon city. Ruins of the dead city flew by around us. The cave was on a fairly high wall that let us view the ruins from above. Seeing them up close, the buildings barely looked decayed. It was as if it were a thriving city where the entire population had just vanished. I saw magic lamps glowing in the many buildings, making the empty city look strangely alive. 

“Where are we going?!” I shouted. 

“Don’t look at the city, look at the walls around it!” Gharb shouted back. 

I turned to the walls and saw that they were full of holes. They were located at about the same height as the cave we descended from and looked to be the same size too. There were more than I could count. 

“I knew it,” Lorraine whispered. 

“Figured something out?” I asked. 

“Yes. You know how I mentioned that the Empire found a teleportation circle here?” 

“Yeah, but so what?” 

“The one they found wasn’t in that cave we came from. It was somewhere else. As soon as you descend from the fifty-ninth floor, there’s a small cave near the entrance to the city. That’s where the one they found is located. Nobody could explore much beyond that due to the monsters.” 

“So there are multiple teleportation circles?” 

“Yes, and possibly more than just those two. All those holes in the walls might contain their own,” Lorraine said, trembling a bit. 

“That’s right!” Gharb yelled. “But I haven’t checked all of them, so I couldn’t tell you which ones go where!” 

“Just thinking about this is terrifying,” Lorraine said. “If the Empire took control of this city, they would dominate the entire continent.” 

I nodded. “We can never let them find out. Well, they’d have to be from Hathara to use the teleportation circles, so maybe it’d be fine.” 

“If anything, I think that would put the people of Hathara in danger,” she said. 

It was true that if the people of Hathara themselves were the key, they would likely be targeted. But I couldn’t imagine how the Empire would reach that conclusion in the first place. 

“Speaking of which,” Lorraine whispered, remembering something, “Rentt, you were able to use it despite being a vampire. If you brought a vampiric servant along, maybe they could use the teleportation circles too. Vampires create servants by giving another creature some of their blood, after all.” 

That sounded like an interesting theory, but I would have to try it to know for sure. If only I had brought Edel, but he wasn’t with me at the moment. It would be worth attempting in the future though. If it turned out to be possible, then I could single-handedly act as the key for all the teleportation circles. As a consequence, though, I felt like I was now in enormously more danger than ever. If the Empire ever figured all this out, they were going to come for me. 

We eventually arrived at one of the many caves in the walls, one that was situated far in the back of the city. I thought there would be a teleportation circle here too. 

“I don’t see anything,” I said to Gharb and Capitan. The structure of the cave was identical to the one we were first teleported to. There was a long hallway that led to a big room. It only differed in that nothing was drawn on the ground. 

“Well, I’m sure you don’t,” Gharb said. “But this is the right place. Do it, Capitan.” 

Capitan took two rocks out of his pocket. One glowed a dull red and one a cloudy blue. He raised the red rock and threw it at the ground with all his might. It split open, and a pattern rapidly materialized on the ground. 

“What?! A teleportation circle?” Lorraine exclaimed. 

“That’s right,” Gharb said, nodding. “This is one of the magic items that has been passed down to us. It allows us to create new teleportation circles. The medicine woman and the head hunter receive a pair each. We just used one of them.” 

“A pair? So the red and blue rocks come as a set?” I asked. 

“Yes. It doesn’t matter which one you use first, but when you strike one against the ground, it produces a teleportation circle. The exit is created with the other rock. Convenient, eh?” she said. 

Not only was it convenient, but if this were put up at an auction, it could sell for an astronomical price. I didn’t know about Lorraine, but I’d never seen anything like this before. They wanted to demonstrate how it worked, presumably, but this didn’t seem like something to be used lightly. 

“You can have this one,” Capitan said, handing over the blue rock. “Place the teleportation circle wherever you want.” 

The rock had looked cloudy from far away, but there were actually tons of tiny glyphs swirling around inside. It looked like a pretty advanced magic item. 

“You’re giving this to us?” I asked. 

“We did say we were letting you look after the city,” Capitan said indifferently. “After you get back to Maalt, you don’t want to have to take the carriage to Hathara every time you want to visit, right? This’ll take you here and back in an instant. Well, it’s still half a day’s walk between that fortress and Hathara, but it’s only a few hours if you hurry. Makes things a lot easier, yeah?” 

I appreciated the thought, but I didn’t know if I should accept. I looked at Lorraine, who was silently staring at the blue rock, eager to snatch it from my hands. When I handed it to her, she held it right up in front of her eyeballs and gazed into it. She began to mutter about magic theories and such. It was a tiny bit terrifying. But no matter how much success she had as a scholar, obtaining something like this came down to luck, so she was probably exhilarated. I figured it was fine. 

“Oh, you can have mine too,” Gharb said and gave us her red and blue rocks. “These are still together as a set. Sorry that Capitan went ahead and picked this spot to place one of his.” 

Hers were a slightly different color than Capitan’s, but they looked mostly identical. I had to be careful not to get them confused. The exit, or maybe the entrance if there was any distinction there, being here on this spot was fine by me. According to Gharb, there were plenty more teleportation circles placed here anyway, so we could use these ruins as a hub to easily travel to faraway lands. In fact, even if we had the choice of where to place each teleportation circle, I would have used one here and one in Maalt. I couldn’t think of a good place to use the other set, so it was best to hold onto those for the time being. Maybe we would find a vital location for them soon, but we needed to think before we used them. 

“Now, would you like to try using some other teleportation circles?” Gharb asked. “I’ve already checked the destinations of a handful of them.” 

Lorraine and I nodded. 

“All right, then get back on,” Gharb said and climbed onto the shahor melechnamer. 

We were used to riding it at this point, so we got on more smoothly than before. Once all four of us were settled, the shahor melechnamer got running again. 

“I know where this teleportation circle leads, but it’s to a bit of a bewildering place. We’ll use it first, as usual,” Gharb said. Then she and Capitan stood on the teleportation circle and disappeared. 

“What do you think she meant by a bewildering place?” I asked Lorraine. 

“Maybe a beach next to a stormy sea, or the summit of a volcano.” 

“Well, I sure hope it’s neither of those.” 

That was a joke, of course, but for something to bewilder someone as brave as Gharb and Capitan, it had to be something of the sort. Waiting behind wasn’t an option though, so we stood on the magic circle and warped to an unknown land. 

When I got there, I couldn’t help but yelp. The first thing I noticed was a fierce stench. Lorraine didn’t say anything, but she was wincing. I could see why; the smell was pretty awful. 

“See what I mean?” Gharb said with a grin. Capitan was smiling too. This was certainly bewildering. 

“So what is this place?” I asked. 

“A sewer,” Gharb answered. “A secret room inside a sewer, specifically.” Gharb felt around the stone wall until part of it slid out of the way with a loud grinding sound. A few seconds later, a path forward appeared, with a waterway on the other side. “Now let’s go.” 

“I wonder if this was here back when that city was thriving,” I said as we walked through the sewer. 

“It’s possible, but probably not,” Lorraine said after thinking about it a bit. “Do you know, Gharb?” 

Gharb nodded. “Yes, you’re correct. This sewer isn’t quite so old. It’s still old, mind you, but only a few centuries old.” The ruined city was presumably thousands of years old, so by comparison, this place didn’t have much history. 

“But there’s a teleportation circle here,” I argued. “Those can’t be created with modern technology, so it would’ve had to have been here since the city was active, right?” 

“Rentt, have you been paying any attention?” Gharb retorted. “Everyone with a special role in Hathara had a set of those rocks. Some of them used them already, though. This one was left by a chancellor, I believe. A chancellor from long ago.” 

That made sense, but those people with special roles were supposed to keep the ruins and everything related to them a secret. I didn’t understand why they would have made a teleportation circle. 

“We’re almost to the exit,” Gharb said and pointed to some light up ahead. As we got closer, I saw that it wasn’t artificial light this time. It came from the sun, and I could see trees outside as if we were in a forest. There was a flowing stream as well. 

“Where are we?” I asked. I looked all around me, but I had no idea. 

“One moment. Hide, Rehesteel,” Gharb chanted. I turned back to the sewer’s exit and saw vines and grass grow over it until it was no longer visible. 

“That wasn’t a spell that Gharb cast,” Lorraine said. “Rather, this exit itself is enchanted to react to a magic word. It’s very complex, so I don’t think it could be canceled easily.” 

For Lorraine to say that, this must have been fairly advanced magic. An ordinary magician would pass by without even noticing anything, presumably. I was clueless about any of this, though. There was too much to learn about magic. I wanted to be able to talk about the structure of spells and such one day, but maybe that was out of my reach. 

We followed Gharb for a while longer. Not that long, but long enough that it felt like a decent walk. Eventually, we saw something. 

“Is that a castle? Does that mean we’re in the capital?” I asked. There was a massive, towering building before us. Standing in the middle of a city surrounded by high walls, the white building looked majestic and beautiful. There was no structure in this country more grand than this one. We had to be in Vistelya, the capital of the Kingdom of Yaaran. To be honest, I had never been here before. I knew it from books and stories, but this was my first time seeing it in person. Now I knew why the Hatharan villagers got so excited when I talked about Maalt. This was a real city. 

I turned to Lorraine to see how she felt, but she looked indifferent. She came from an even bigger city, so maybe this wasn’t that special to her, but the difference in her reaction was kind of frustrating. Now I was set on going to the capital of the Empire someday. 

“Shall we look around a bit before we return?” Gharb said nonchalantly. “There are some materials we were just about to run out of.” 

“There’s somewhere I want to go too,” Capitan said. “Let’s split up for now and meet back up later.” 

They sounded much too casual about this. “Are you sure?” I said. “Won’t it be strange for Hatharans to just suddenly show up in the capital?” 

From what I had heard, Vistelya had gates in the north, south, east, and west, and everyone who came to the city had to prove their identity. Some form of identification had to be presented in order to pass, but I didn’t know what they would use. 

Just when I was wondering that, they each took out a bronze card that I had seen many times before. 

“Aren’t those Bronze-class adventurer cards?” I asked. It was fairly difficult for me to acquire mine the first time, but it was easy the second time. As to why these two had their own, though, I didn’t know. 

Capitan seemed to notice why I was staring and answered my question. “We got them for times like these. We used fake names and got them in a city far from Hathara. They won’t suspect anything. We do the occasional adventuring work, so there are records of our work history too.” 

I checked the location of the guild listed on their cards, and it did say the name of a distant city. As far as what jobs they took and how many they did, I would have to work for the guild to check, so I didn’t know. Knowing Capitan’s skill, it was easy to imagine that he did something impressive. The same went for Gharb. Her card listed a different guild from Capitan’s, so they had put a lot of work into the details. They probably used the teleportation circles to go pick these up, and it seemed like they used them without much thought. I didn’t know if that was the best idea, but on the other hand, these two likely knew to exercise some amount of caution. 

“Anyway, go see the sights and enjoy yourselves,” Capitan said. 

“I’m kind of concerned that we’ll look suspicious too,” I responded. 

“If you use your Rentt Vivie card, you should be fine,” Lorraine said. 

Maybe that was true. I was supposed to be away from Maalt anyway, so we could say that Rentt Faina was in Hathara while Rentt Vivie was in the capital. 

“But what about you, Lorraine?” I asked. 

“Me? I have my own method. It’s nothing special, but look,” Lorraine said and showed me a few different identification cards from the Empire. They all featured different names. These were clearly fakes. One of them had her real name, but I doubted she planned to use that. She did things like this sometimes, so I wondered just how Lorraine was treated within the Empire, but there was no use asking about that now. Besides, she was who she was, and nothing would change that. It was fine. 

“Well, I guess there are no issues, then. Let’s go,” I said, and we approached the gate to Vistelya.