episode_0115

About two hours before Charlotte arrived in the Bneron Mountains.

I woke up to the loud sound of the wind disturbing my ears. what? Where are we?

I couldn’t come to my senses due to my pounding head and upset stomach, so I tried to calm down and open my eyes.

‘I can’t open my eyes…’ … .’

However, it was not easy to even raise my head due to the wind pressure pressing down on my entire body, and eventually I gave up trying to open my eyes and lowered my head.

‘If I had been able to open my eyes, I would have been able to understand my physical condition more accurately… … .’

It was a bit disappointing that I couldn’t open my eyes, but there was nothing I could do right now.

I had no choice but to close my eyes and take stock of the situation, and began to climb up first, tracing my memories.

Practical test. top of the mountain. The one where the griffon attacked, and the one where Charlotte helped… … .

‘and–‘

Did he faint from the shock of being kidnapped? My last memory was of the griffon flying into the sky.

No, there was one more thing I remember. That is, the tearful cry of a griffon heard from behind.

“Uh, um… … .”

I am now caught by a griffon and am flying away. As soon as I realized that, I felt something gripping my body tightly.

Size, texture, and even the force that presses against the body. Since it was something that could never come from a human, I quickly realized that it was a griffon’s foot.

okay. You knew it would happen like this. Even in the game, there were illustrations of people being caught and flying like this.

After trying hard to calm my mind, I tried moving my hands and feet.

‘Hands and feet… … .’

My arm throbbed every time I clenched and unclenched my fist, but fortunately my hands and feet were able to move just fine, and I breathed a sigh of relief at that fact.

‘thank god. It’s moving… … .’

When I was snatched by the griffon, I wondered what would happen if my limbs stopped moving due to being scratched or torn by the claws, but fortunately, that didn’t happen.

but… … .

‘cold… … .’

It was cold.

No matter how close it was to summer, the cold from flying at such a high height was incomparable to the harsh winter winds.

Because I had been flying for a long time in such cold weather, my ears and cheeks were sore as if they were torn, and my fingertips and toes were numb.

I came to my senses and as time passed, I felt the sensation becoming clearer.

“Ugh… … .”

The next thing that came after the pain that made me think I might have been frostbitten was the tenderness that felt like my body was being crushed.

‘Did you even notice that I was up?’

Although it was definitely uncomfortable a little while ago, I was able to move my body to a certain extent, but suddenly the pressure on my body became worse.

Although he was struggling to hold on, compared to the griffon’s grip strength, he was like a lantern in the wind. okay. It was literally a pointless resistance.

It was when I started to think that if I continued like this, something would break.

[――!!!]

As soon as I heard the griffon’s tearing cry, I no longer felt the harsh wind hitting my face.

What came instead was a feeling of floating that took my breath away.

“Ah――”

I let out a short sigh and reflexively opened my eyes, and what I saw was mountain fog flowing gently between the steep rock cliffs and the high rocky mountains. They were green-colored trees decorating what could have been a plain gray rocky mountain.

I was so excited to see the magnificent scenery that I had always seen only in photos and videos unfolding before my eyes that I even momentarily forgot what situation I was in.

Everything felt like it was in slow motion. The open view and the world extending beyond the horizon were so beautiful that I wished I could see this view forever.

“Ah… … .”

What came to me as soon as the world’s consideration for me ended was the feeling as if my internal organs were being pulled up by someone’s hand. It was a sinking feeling that made my bones feel bitter.

I wonder if the gyro drop and roller coaster that my friends from my past life told me about felt like this. No, this is much scarier than those things. I’ve never ridden it, but I can be sure.

That’s right, it’s free fall with no safety gear or parachute.

“Ouch――!!”

Feeling like my whole body was frozen like a stone, I held my breath and reached out with difficulty, grasping the brooch that was hanging on my chest with both hands.

are you okay. It will be fine. Because there is a brooch. It will be fine.

I kept repeating it to myself over and over again, but saying it was okay didn’t make the fear go away.

“Charles… … !!”

Why? I blurted out Charlotte’s name without realizing it. Before I even realized what was strange about that fact, I felt something wrapping around my body.

pop–!!

I waved my arms in the cold current that felt like something was exploding, and came out onto land, holding the tree branch in my hand.

Perhaps it was because of the impact of falling from a high place, or some other reason, but my eyes were spinning.

Not only that, but because I opened my mouth unconsciously, I drank a lot of river water, and the water even got into my nose, making my forehead tingle.

“Ugh… … !”

I was making a groaning sound, and I was pressing down on the floor and spitting out everything that was coming from inside me.

“Wow!! Kehehe! Wow… … .”

After coughing, spitting out the water I had drank, and resting on the floor for a while to catch my breath, I slowly raised my head.

“Ha… … . ha… … .”

What I saw in front of me were strangely shaped cliffs, a fairly fast-flowing river, and trees in between.

Things that seemed so beautiful when seen from afar, when I saw them up close, felt as if they were going to crush me at any moment.

My whole body was wet and wet, but the good news was that unlike up there in the sky, it wasn’t that cold, so I didn’t have to worry about freezing to death.

――!!

I was staring blankly ahead, but when I heard the tearing sound of the griffon coming from the sky, I trembled and stood up.

It was obvious that if I stayed here, I would be captured by the Gryphon again.

And in the game, if you choose to stay still and wait for rescue, you are headed straight to the bad ending where you die after being attacked by a griffon, so you have to move first.

“Ugh… … .”

My legs were shaking because I fell from such a high place, but I gritted my teeth and moved my legs, thinking that I would die if I stayed still.

As I walked along the river, leaning on the cliff, I raised my head and looked up at the sky when I heard the tearing sound again.

They seemed to be confused by my sudden disappearance, as they were circling in the same spot.

“Now is your chance.”

I gritted my teeth and walked forward, and as I walked a little, I was able to find a small gap between the strangely shaped cliffs.

At first, I thought it was just a gap between the cliffs, but wind was seeping out from within the gap. The wind was so cold that it made me shiver.

“There is space inside… … ?”

I looked through the gap, but all I could see was black darkness.

At first glance, it looked like a closed gap as not even sunlight could shine through, but judging by the cold wind blowing, it was clear that there was some kind of space inside.

“Oh, that’s right. Magic… … .”

I tried to look inside with fire magic, but when I remembered that griffons are sensitive to magic, I lowered my hand again.

Can I go in? It looked like a gap big enough for one person to fit in, but I wasn’t sure if I could go in.

Was there a place like this in the game? During the Gryphon Attack event, there was no description of him hiding somewhere… … .

‘This is not a game world.’

Charlotte’s voice came to mind once again. Uncertainty about the future. It held me back.

“… … .”

What if I fail here again? Just like when I couldn’t save Sera, like when I couldn’t help Bay. If you fail and despair… … ?

The gaze falls towards the floor. My legs became stiff and my hands became weak.

okay. Let’s pass by. Let’s just pass by and find another place to hide. While thinking that, I was about to walk.

――!!!

I turned my head and looked up at the sky when I heard the cry of a griffon that was getting closer than before, and before I knew it, the sight of a griffon flying right over my head caught my eye.

‘I’ve been thinking about it for too long… … !’

What should I do? how… … .

Just worry for a moment. Realizing that if I die here, everything will be meaningless, I threw myself into the gap in the cliff.

“Ugh, it’s narrow… … .”

Contrary to what I had seen with my own eyes, the chest area was a little tight, but it wasn’t so much that I couldn’t get in, so I forced myself through the gap.

Fortunately, the only thing that was narrow was the entrance, and after a while, an open space emerged.

And at the same time as the body gets out of the narrow gap.

thud!!

[――!!]

“Ugh… … .”

With a patter, a pile of stones fell. A tearing noise echoed throughout the cave.

When I looked back, I saw the griffon’s bright yellow eyes shining brilliantly through the cracks in the rocks.

[――!! ――!!]

The griffon seemed very angry, scratching the cracks in the rocks with its claws and making loud cries. Soon, it turned its back and disappeared, making a grunt sound, perhaps from exhaustion or loss of interest.

“Did he leave? … .”

Feeling relieved that I had survived, my legs became weak and I sat down and looked back with a sigh of relief.

There… … .