Ch. 54 Soft and Fluffy Sky Island
by AfuhfuihgsChapter 54 – Soft and Fluffy Sky Island
Even though the Return Guild split into smaller and larger guilds, the main goal of the pioneer players remained unchanged.
Dreaming of returning to the real world, they pursued the traces of the “Bird that Sings of Destruction.”
They continued to strive tirelessly to go back to their original world.
Of course, not everyone was like that. Some had grown weary and dropped out along the way.
What weighed on my mind were those who still hadn’t given up.
The Seeker of Knowledge mentioned that there might be another Outsider in this world besides themselves.
Perhaps that Outsider had already made contact with some of the pioneer players.
It was certain that at least one of them was cooperating with another Outsider to chase the Bird that Sings of Destruction.
The serious contemplation continued even after meeting my party members.
“Why does Supreme look so serious today?”
“She’s probably thinking about what to have for lunch.”
I turned my head at the voices coming from beside me.
There was , two small girls were sitting side by side, swinging their short legs back and forth.
It was Nyongmom and Isolin.
I let out a small sigh as I looked at the two girls.
How could they not be worried when another group wishing for the destruction of this world had emerged?
The Singing Cult and the mysterious Outsider.
Though their ultimate goals were different, both desired the destruction of this world.
In the worst-case scenario, some players who had made contact with the Outsider might even form an alliance with the Singing Cult.
Of course, it might just be my overactive imagination. There was no concrete evidence that players who had made contact with the Outsider wished for the world’s destruction.
All I could do for now was keep a close eye on the pioneer players.
To gather more accurate information, I needed to get closer to the pioneer players.
To do that, I needed to level up.
To prevent the destruction of this world, I needed to grow stronger—both myself and our party.
Leveling up and becoming stronger was essential.
To restore the Seeker of Knowledge’s power, we needed to venture into dangerous places.
If we became stronger by leveling up, we could embark on relatively safer adventures.
All our goals aligned at that moment.
“I need to get stronger…!”
I said that and jumped up from my seat. However, I couldn’t share my thoughts with everyone just yet.
While I trusted Isolin and Gladys, I hadn’t built a deep enough trust with Nyukmom yet. As they say, the human heart is as fickle as a reed.
I planned to explain my grand plan once I was sure they were fully on my side.
For now, we needed to prepare for a party hunt. I turned to Isolin and Nyukmom, who were staring blankly at me, and said:
“Let’s go!”
“Where to?”
“Where?”
“To Gladys!”
Our current location was the first-floor dining area of the inn. Since Isolin, Nyongmom, and I were staying at the inn, we could meet like this during breakfast, but Gladys couldn’t.
She was still living in an old barn.
“Let’s go!”
The three of us left the inn and headed toward the barn where Gladys was staying.
Clatter-clatter—
When we arrived at the old barn, Gladys was sitting on a small chair, intently examining something.
Even though we made noise, she didn’t turn around, indicating she was deeply engrossed.
Judging by the plate nearby, it seemed she was having breakfast at the same time.
I tiptoed behind Gladys. Seeing her in a thin tank top, I gulped.
Her tied-up hair revealed her white nape, and her soft shoulders shone flawlessly.
It was truly a breathtaking sight.
Normally, sneaking up from behind would involve covering someone’s eyes, but my hand went elsewhere.
I reached out and grabbed Gladys’s white shoulder. She jumped up in shock.
“Eek…!”
“Gasp…!”
Her reaction was more startled than I expected, and I, too, jumped back in surprise.
Gladys quickly turned around.
“Ah, ah… Supreme… You scared me…”
She seemed genuinely startled, rubbing her shoulder. Her cheeks were slightly red as she adjusted the leather jacket she had taken off earlier.
The sight of her white shoulders disappeared, which was a shame.
I shifted my gaze to Gladys’s right hand. The small girl was clutching an old map.
I greeted her and asked:
“Hello. What’s that?”
“Ah, this? I helped an adventurer recently, and he gave me this map as a reward.”
“A map…?”
“Yeah. Let me explain how it happened…”
Gladys began explaining how she got the map. She often took on various quests, and sometimes they led to unexpected chain quests.
This map was part of a questline she had completed earlier.
[The Liar Adventurer’s Map]
A map created by Laban, the greatest liar of Fox Tail.
To make it look authentic, he drew the map on old paper.
-“It’s there! A huge island above the clouds!”
-Laban, buying old paper in bulk.-
“What is this…?”
I tilted my head as I examined the map Gladys handed me. It depicted a path leading up to the sky and an island above the clouds.
The ink even smudged when I rubbed it, as if it hadn’t dried yet.
A sky island?
While it’s a common setting in fantasy games, I wasn’t particularly excited.
Everything about this map screamed that it was fake.
Without hesitation, I handed the map back to Gladys.
Her eyes sparkled as she asked me:
“So? Aren’t you excited?”
“About what?”
“The sky island!”
Gladys’s eyes sparkled as she crumpled the map in her hands. I forced a faint smile at her pure excitement.
I wanted to tell her to throw away that fake map and go hunting, but seeing her so excited, I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
Gladys continued:
“Laban said that in his youth, he traveled the world. He would gather children and tell them his adventures.”
Gathering innocent children and spinning tall tales sounded exactly like a scammer.
I narrowed my eyes and asked Gladys:
“Gladys, you’ve been scammed a lot in online games, haven’t you?”
“Huh? How did you know?”
Gladys’s eyes widened in surprise at my question. I shook my head as I looked at the pitiful girl in front of me.
“I just had a feeling.”
“Gasp…”
Leaving Gladys to her surprise, I turned to Isolin and Nyukmom. The two girls seemed quite interested in the story, their eyes shining.
I asked for their opinions:
“What should we do?”
“Experiencing it once might not be so bad.”
“I want to go. What if the sky island is real?”
Both of them seemed open to the idea.
I crossed my arms and nodded.
All the party members wanted to follow the suspicious map and search for the sky island.
And so, today’s goal was decided.
Before setting off on the adventure, we didn’t need much preparation. Our inventory was always stocked with sleeping bags and food.
Me, Isolin, Gladys, and Nyongmom left Fox Tail, following the suspicious map.
Clatter-clatter—
The path indicated by the map led to a dangerous area frequented by monsters. Of course, the party wasn’t in any danger.
The tiny fairy knight, Nyukmom, dashed ahead and slaughtered all the monsters.
We crossed wide fields, climbed mountains, and passed small streams. When we reached a lake, we quenched our thirst with its cool water.
Half a day had passed since we left Fox Tail, but the journey still seemed long. It was questionable whether the map’s sky island even existed.
A path leading from the ground to the sky—what kind of path could that be?
Players never tire, no matter how long they run. Even small girls could cross a large mountain in an instant by moving their short legs tirelessly.
Clatter-clatter—
When the sun disappeared from the sky, and the world was enveloped in darkness, the four girls arrived at the end of the path indicated by the map. The end of the path was a volcano not far from Fox Tail.
The dormant volcano was quiet. There was no hot lava or sudden bursts of flames. Naturally, there was no path leading to the sky either.
The map was indeed fake.
“Hmm…”
Gladys looked around with a sullen expression. I spread out a mat on the ground and called the girls over. It was almost time for dinner.
However, no one was interested in dinner. Gladys, along with Nyukmom and Isolin, looked disappointed as they peered into the volcano’s crater.
I sighed as I watched the girls running around, panting. They were all adults before they took on these childlike forms… Could it be that their inner selves regressed along with their appearances?
I swallowed a bitter laugh and sat down on a large rock.
That’s when it happened.
Clank—!
A strange sound came from beneath me. It was as if a large mechanical device was forcibly turning.
Clank—! Clatter—! Clank—!
Feeling an inexplicable sense of foreboding, I quickly stood up. At that moment—
Flash—!
A bright light poured down from the sky, and my body began to float into the air.
“Gasp…!”
It wasn’t just me. Small rocks, sleeping monsters, and even the three girls wandering inside the crater were floating into the air.
“We’re getting closer to the sky!”
“Eeeek!”
“I can’t break free!”
As we rose into the air, our bodies began to spin. Isolin, Gladys, and Nyongmom flipped over and over as they soared into the sky.
Vrslop_translator
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