Chapter 64 - Beyond New Horizons [3]
“Cleanse.”
—Voom…
I gathered the blood and dirt from Scarlett’s clothes, concentrating until it swirled at the tip of my finger, forming a spherical shape.
Her clothes were baggy, so I managed to collect enough dirt to create a sphere the size of my fist.
“Mistress…?”
...
...
...
"...Ah?”
Did I just reveal my ability to use different types of magic?
“Uh— I mean, that was…something I learned from the Knowledge Cube! The Knowledge Cube!” I desperately tried to explain.
I had used this same excuse with Vendrick, a Grand Council member, so I wondered if I should have told Scarlett that <Cleanse> was a spell I developed myself.
Then again, cleaning magic out of all things wouldn’t make sense either unless I’m retarded.
Which… I kind of was, since I had indeed spent months developing this spell.
“…I see.” Scarlett nodded her head.
Knowing me well enough— not as Aria, but as Kuro—she didn't ask any further questions.
Instead, she felt awe at how effortlessly I removed the stain from her clothes.
As much as I wanted to conceal my pure mana core, there would come a day when it would be revealed.
But now wasn't a good time; we needed to get out of here before—
—Thump… Thump… Thump!!!
Heavy tremors shook the ground beneath us.
“!!!”
—Kachick! Shing…!
Without a second thought, we armed ourselves with our weapons, ready to fight once more.
I squinted my eyes to see what was coming on our way, only to double down and regret it.
“...Bweh?” My mind short-circuited at the sight of true chaos.
Compared to the Eldians that had ambushed us, an even greater number approached, overwhelming in size.
…No, ‘greater’ was an understatement.
There were so many that I couldn't count them all, and my peripheral vision couldn't take it in.
This… This isn’t a horde…
—That’s a whole ass stampede!
‘Hundreds, no… thousands of them?!’ Their sheer numbers were enough to make me feel numb.
—Thump Thump Thump!!!
Without a moment's doubt, I took a step back, regretting having given Scarlett the green light, which compromised our location.
In contrast, Scarlett stepped forward, seemingly unfazed by the danger.
“Huh…? Scarlett! What the hell are you doing?!” I shouted, panic rising in my voice.
Alas— it dawned upon my pitiful self that what Scarlett was feeling wasn’t fear.
She was quite literally drooling with excitement.
“S-SCARLETT!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, a pitch I didn't think I was capable of producing.
“M-Mistress?!” She turned her head at the sound of my frantic call.
—Grab!
With urgency, I dragged her by the wrist.
“Come on, get your ass in the car! We are NOT doing this!”
“A-Ah!”
We ran back to the car as fast as we could and slammed the door behind us.
Wasn't this the second feral dog I had to babysit?
At least Camellia was sensible… and we won’t even talk about Noah.
Maybe I should find allies I could trust instead of being paired with crazy people.
“○■●○■○●!!”
Running out of time, the Eldians were quickly catching up.
Not only were there thousands of them, but stronger variations were mixed into the stampede—a tier above a Rotten.
“Scarlett, drive now!”
“Yes, Mistress!” she replied, nodding her head as she stepped on the gas pedal.
—Vrrrroom…!!!
The car accelerated at full speed.
—Vooom…!
Before we knew it, the Eldians had already latched onto the vehicle, trying to tear it apart.
“Dammit!” I cursed, searching for a way to pry them off.
To protect our only vehicle from damage, I opened the window to assess the situation.
“Mistress!” Scarlett shouted, visibly concerned for my safety.
“Don’t worry about me! Just drive!” I responded firmly.
With two Libera in hand, I activated <Heightened Senses> to regain focus and scan for any Eldians that had latched on.
Two were barely hanging on near the wheels, while another was on the roof, creating dents as it tried to tear a hole.
I could shoot them individually, but there was no time; if I hesitated, one of them would break through, even if it was an armoured vehicle.
I asked myself:
What was the best course of action that could also be the safest?
How could we outrun them and, at the same time, toss them into the air?
—Ding!
"...Ah!" A light bulb flickered in my head.
“Scarlett! Are you ready?!” I closed the window and moved to the back of the car.
Her overwhelming loyalty came with complete trust in me and belief in my capabilities.
With a silent nod, her eyes focused sharply, as I could see in the mirror.
It was the confirmation I needed.
—Kachick!
Nothing else to hold me back, two Liberas were loaded with a specific bullet each.
To make it safer, I spread Ichor around the car, binding it with my arms to keep them from falling off and to also prevent the vehicle from collapsing.
My principle, ever since I fought for my life in Aleph, hasn’t changed:
Brute force.
If we weren't going fast enough.
Then we have to go faster than before.
“PREPARE FOR LIFT-OFF!!!” I smiled and pulled the trigger, using two <Gale Bullets> at once.
Sorry, me.
I've lost my sanity already.
—FWOOOSH!!!
Under the intense wind pressure straight out of a racing game, the distance between us gradually widened.
The Eldians that were hanging outside couldn't handle the pressure and fell off, until I could no longer hear their ungodly wails.
“Ha, hahaha…! That was too close…” I sighed in relief.
My arms throbbed with numbness, so I slumped down into the chair now that it was over.
“Mistress, are you alright?” Scarlett asked.
“I’m fine, but Scarlett… are these encounters normal?” I inquired.
“…Yes, especially in this area,” Scarlett replied, her expression unwavering.
“Now that we’ve reached the borders of Trestkania, it’s going to be much more dangerous.”
“Well, isn't that lovely… wait, we're in Trestkania already?”
I hadn’t anticipated this, so I looked out the window, expecting a new world beyond.
We had passed through a crumbling wall, officially leaving Demiurge, the country I had been stuck in my entire life.
…Yet, Trestkania wasn’t what it seemed; the promised land filled with advanced technology was nowhere to be found—
—But a barren desert wasteland, devoid of life.
“What… happened…?” I murmured, devastated, unable to grasp the cruel reality before my eyes.
“…Ever since the 2nd Cardinal Sky, Trestkania has suffered the most damage of any country, next to Zelkovania, all from a single entity.”
Ancrel, the continent Demiurge and Trestkania were located to the east in this world.
The climate was nice and warm, then cold during the winter.
However, due to an anomaly, Trestkania suffered severe desertification.
"I heard about it, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad." A sharp pain pierced my chest as I took in the extent of the destruction compared to Demiurge.
Having escaped Arcadia, I felt like a fish in a small pond.
The ocean beyond was far too vast for me to comprehend—a world in ruins.
As for how I’ll be able to catch up to pioneers who kept this world stable… only time could tell.
—Crackle Crackle…
“Today was pretty rough…” I yawned from exhaustion and lay down on my sleeping bag.
Camping outside wasn’t half bad.
Scarlett told me that this was a safe place often used by travellers, so I decided to go along with it and bask in the moonlight.
The army of rottens, the desertification of Trestkania…
It's clear that what I was dealing with wasn’t something anyone could fix overnight—even me.
It felt like climbing a steep mountain where, no matter what I did, reaching the summit seemed impossible.
But that didn’t mean I should give up.
My desire to reach the summit kept me going, pushing me to see this through to the very end.
“Hey Scarlett... are you still awake?”
“…Yes, Mistress—”
“Sigh… stop calling me that,” I cut her off and felt distasteful.
Hearing that flimsy title over and over these past few weeks didn’t feel right.
“Can you call me something else? Like maybe… Aria—”
“I cannot do that."
She responded instantly when I asked her to call me by my first name.
“Ugh, something less formal?”
…
…
…
“…I’ll try my best, Mistre… Lady Aria.” She addressed me with a grand title.
“…Humu, good, that’s much better, I guess.” I lay down with my legs crossed and gazed at the sky.
The broken moon seemed normal to me now that months had passed.
I had escaped the Aleph dimension, only to find myself greeted by another form of purgatory… I didn’t know what to do at that time.
To be engulfed in guilt, or to move forward.
I had to pick one.
In the end, I chose the latter, which led me to the present day.
I often wonder what would have happened if I had given up.
If I had done that…
I would never have forgiven myself, even in death.
…
…
…
“Lady Aria,” Scarlett asked as she stood up.
“…Yeah? What is it?” I opened my eyes and looked at her, finding it unusual for her to address me directly.
“Six years ago, why did you disappear without a trace?”
“Six years ago…? Ah.”
I can’t tell her I was only gone for less than a day, can I?
“Would you believe me if I said I was sucked into another dimension that day?”
“I believe you.”
She stated her true thoughts without hesitation.
“...How would you know if I’m lying or not?”
“I saw what happened the day you and another individual were sucked into that rift.”
“…Hah, so you were keeping tabs on me.” I shook my head, realizing they had known all along, hiding in the shadows.
“…My apologies, Lady Aria.” She lowered her head and bowed at a perfect 90-degree angle.
“It’s fine, Father—Gael told you to do so, am I wrong?”
Scarlett slowly nodded her head in response to my accusation.
“Can’t say I didn’t think he would let me go so easily.” I felt a little irritated that my suspicions were confirmed.
“But… I’m glad that you’re safe and alive, Mistress—Lady Aria.” Scarlett, as a sign of respect, held her sword tightly, looking at me with conviction.
It was as if a fire had been ignited, burning brighter than before.
“From the bottom of my heart… I’m truly glad.” She smiled.
“…I see.” I turned around and lay down on my bed again, calling it a day.
“Good dreams, Lady Aria.”
“…Hmph.”
A little relieved that this journey wouldn’t be so awkward, my consciousness slowly faded away.
I hoped that tomorrow would be different now that the two of us had talked things out.
‘Huh… so she can smile like that,’ I thought before I fell into a deep sleep.
“Scarlett, answer me. Did you stay up all night?” I placed my hands on my face, disappointed by her persistence.
“Yes, Lady Aria. After the attack yesterday, I took precautions to avoid any more—”
“Sleep.”
"But—"
"Sleep."
"Lady A—"
"Sleep."
“I… I understand."
No longer resisting, Scarlett slumped her shoulders like a wet dog and slowly walked back to her camp.
Abandoned Trestkanian City. Morning.
I expected better scenery, but the whole damn region was a desert.
The buildings showed signs of decay, even more so than in Demiurge.
It's a little... underwhelming.
We took refuge here to gather more supplies, which I’ll use as an excuse to stay in one place for a while before we move on and create bullets as well.
I should have made more ammunition when I was in Kleinford; I was just so busy that I only managed to get four to six hours of sleep every night, and that has continued since then.
There will come a time when I'll need to use overcharged bullets in rapid succession.
“Ugh, this is annoying...” I sighed deeply, feeling like I might rip my hair out.
I should have seen this coming, even though we talked about a few things yesterday. especially coming from Scarlett.
People don't change easily, after all.
