episode_0127

Following me, Johanna and Fana crossed the door and entered the space.

Then, they noticed a person standing a little away and their eyes widened slightly.

“Oh, there were other people in the group too.”

When the man, Baran, saw them, he smiled again and greeted them politely.

“It is called Varan Bellort.”

The group, including me, stared at the greeting, which was greeted with dignity and without the slightest violation of etiquette.

Considering the structure of this tomb, and considering that I met Fana and Johanna, it is not strange to meet someone else.

However, it is true that it may be a bit surprising if the other person is a celebrity like Baran.

“… It’s called Andel.”

For now, I returned the greeting to him.

Because it wasn’t polite to stand still like this.

However, in the meantime, I noticed one thing.

“… Are there any other people there?”

That no one else is visible except Baran.

“Ah, I was alone all along. You are the first time I have encountered anyone since I came here.”

Baran answered in a soft tone without even pausing.

‘… … .’

In fact, it wouldn’t be strange if Baran didn’t meet anyone.

To be precise, I should say that I don’t know which is normal since I am not familiar with the structure or operation of this tomb.

There is a possibility that the case of me and Fana is not normal.

Although the case is a bit different from Baran, there is also the case of Johanna.

… by the way.

‘What should I do?’

I haven’t heard Baran’s opinion yet, but when I saw that happy face, it was clear that he wanted to accompany me.

The important thing is whether to accept it or not.

Simply thinking about it, it may be considered safer to increase the number of people in a space where you don’t know what might happen.

If you think about it simply, that is.

This is, so to speak, a place completely blocked from outside views.

In other words, it means that it is a place where no matter what happens, it is not revealed.

And it can be said that in places like this, you have to be more careful about people.

In the case of Baran, he may be relatively less dangerous because he has a good rumor and reputation, but it is not a situation where our party needs more force in the first place.

Panana and Johanna alone will be able to overcome most situations, and if a situation arises that cannot be handled by the two of us, it is up to me to step in.

Therefore, from a certain point of view, it was not very welcome that Baran, who was clearly a talented person, join the group.

The problem is that expressing rejection itself may not be a very pleasant experience for Baran.

Because of this, I couldn’t answer right away and hesitated.

However, it was difficult to come up with an answer.

So I turned to my group with the intention of asking for their opinions.

Then what I saw was Pana with a sad face and Johanna with the same expression as usual.

“Do whatever you want.”

“I’ll leave it to you.”

… It really seemed like it didn’t matter which one I chose.

In the end, the choice was entirely mine.

Sighing softly inwardly, I turned my gaze straight ahead.

I opened my mouth, looking at Baran’s innocent, almost innocent eyes, who were still looking at this place with a gentle smile.

***

“It’s nice to have company like this.”

“… Thank goodness.”

I walked on, half-heartedly answering Baran’s words, which seemed to be in a good mood.

In the end, I chose to accompany Baran.

Of course it wasn’t because I was afraid of going against Baran’s wishes.

It was just because I was worried.

Because of the corpse we saw before entering the door.

It was a situation where there was no telling when or when the monster that created the tragedy would appear.

Baran’s skills were at a level that did not need to be mentioned, but since the level of the monster was currently unknown, it was difficult to leave it alone.

Although I am not a saint, I am not a person who feels comfortable leaving alone someone whose life may be in danger.

Anyway, our group grew by one more, and we went to the tomb again.

It felt like the stage had changed after crossing the gate, but the overall feel of the forest changed a bit, and other than that, there were no other differences.

It’s just that the slime monsters are a bit stronger and more frequent.

And that level of change was not a big problem for our group.

“Ah, I will take care of this guy.”

It wasn’t a problem from the beginning, but the newly added party member Baran’s strength was clearly superior to Johanna’s, so the slime monster was no problem.

We were actually able to move through the tomb at a faster pace than before.

… Of course, that didn’t mean there were no problems.

There was just one problem.

“Isn’t it amazing that a space like this exists? It is indeed the Archmage Verhaville.”

“It’s my first time seeing a monster like this… Looking at this guy reminds me of the time I stopped by Erichum in the southern part of the continent. At that time, I encountered a monster in the forest of Erichum… … .”

“Hoo. Sir Andel’s backpack is structured that way. Oh, my equipment is structured like this, but in fact, these are the items I have been using from the beginning. Especially when it comes to this tent… … .”

“The sky seen from here is so exquisite that it is indistinguishable from what you see from outside. It almost makes me think that the stars twinkling in the sky are the same as those I was looking up at from outside. … By the way, looking up at the night sky quietly like this, I remember the time when I went to the northern part of the continent, to a snowy field. At that time, I happened to stop by a village where there were rumors that werewolves had appeared… … .”

“… … .”

“… … .”

“… … .”

Just one problem.

The point was that this man named Baran Velort talked too much.

To a certain extent, it was a bit of an exaggeration to think that I had never seen a moment when this person did not speak.

Where on earth did he come up with something to say? From the moment he opened his eyes in the morning until just before he closed them at night, Baran could not let his mouth rest.

I was surprised by his prodigious amount of words, but at the same time I had doubts.

Because I’ve never heard of him being this talkative.

So at first, I thought it was just because I was happy to see someone after a long time.

However, such thoughts soon disappeared.

Baran’s level of activity was not at a level that could be expressed as temporary joy.

So that would mean that this is Baran’s original appearance, but it’s strange that rumors don’t spread like that.

However, it wasn’t long before I was able to think of several plausible possibilities.

It is possible that those who knew him hid the fact because they were worried about his image.

Or, it is possible that his family or country took steps to maintain him as a flawless hero.

Otherwise, there is a possibility that the testimony came out a few times but disappeared without attracting much attention.

I don’t know which one is true, but I was able to convince myself that there were no rumors going around.

Anyway, most of the talkative Baran’s opponents were mine.

As soon as Fana found out about Baran’s true nature, she immediately distanced herself from him, and Johanna also rarely tried to get close to Baran.

In the end, I was in a position where I had to listen to Baran all day, and as time went by, I quickly became exhausted.

“Wow, this conversation with Sir Andel is really enjoyable. It’s been a while since I’ve had someone I can communicate with this well.”

… Of course, I only half-heartedly agreed or nodded, but for some reason, Baran seemed to like me.

It was certainly a good thing to win the favor of a warrior with a bright future named Baran, but I was not very happy.

This was because Baran was excited and the number of words increased even more.

Anyway, the group, which had been proceeding without any problems except for me, who was getting tired quickly, stopped for the first time since Baran joined.

It was because a body was found again.

“This is… It’s terrible.”

Baran said with a stiff face.

It was the first heavy face I had seen since I met him.

“Is this your first time seeing a corpse like this, Lord Baran?”

“Yes. I haven’t even seen the shadow of a person since I came here until I met you.”

“I see.”

I nodded quietly.

“From the way you speak, it seems you have seen Sir Andel and the others before.”

Baran asked with serious eyes.

I expressed my approval by tilting my head vertically.

“Yes. Since I came here, I have only seen a corpse in a similar state to this one once.”

“Then… ?”

“… If you look at the traces, it seems highly likely that it was done by the same guy.”

Because the condition of the body was so miserable, there were no proper traces left, but on the other hand, those were no more than traces.

It was rare even among monsters to have hands like this.

“Anyway… It’s so miserable.”

Baran examined the corpse with eyes filled with various emotions.

Behind him, I also slowly examined the body.

The only thing left intact was the head and the body, which is difficult to describe in words as miserable.

I felt a sense of déjà vu as I looked at the corpse.

It wasn’t just a reminder of the corpse I had seen before.

The origins of my déjà vu were much earlier.

A unique and strange monster I encountered on my way to this tomb after leaving Darbil.

The traces left behind on this series of corpses had something reminiscent of that shadow monster.