Ch.203Chapter 203 – The Hero’s Awakening (2)

“What is this picture?”

At my words, Sera simply turned the page quietly.

The back was filled densely with what looked like pictographs.

“It’s… dizzying.”

Chris said that while looking at the pictographs.

Indeed, they were so densely packed that just looking at them could strain one’s eyes.

However, Beatrice and Lumen were examining the page carefully.

“Can you understand what it is?”

“Yes.”

After answering that way, Beatrice quietly said,

“These characters are a kind of spell.”

“A spell?”

“Yes. Since you don’t have the knowledge, they just look like pictures and pictographs to you.”

[Each character is no different from an entire book. The ancient… magicians in their prime sometimes nicknamed them compressed characters.]

Lumen was looking at the characters while wiggling his fingers with interest.

Soon, as if he had finished reading, he quietly said,

[There are many codes… but it says this is a symbol of purity.]

“Yes. That’s what it says.”

Sera answered like that, apparently also able to read the characters.

“During a battle with demons, the seed of Yggdrasil touched the book.”

Then Sera explained that writings about that seed appeared in the book.

And later, two pages like this appeared.

“Two pages?”

“Yes.”

Sera turned to the next page again.

There was a pattern of a different color drawn on it.

“It says ‘symbol of charity.'”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Sera quietly said,

“I don’t know why these specifically appeared in the book, or for what reason.”

But, Sera took a breath and continued,

“Now that we know there was something hidden in the book, I’m more convinced that this book is related to the Philosopher’s Stone.”

I nodded at Sera’s near-certain statement.

From the beginning, when we were looking for that book, there was even a note with Somnus’s name on it.

“If we collect all these pages…”

“You think we might find hints about where the Philosopher’s Stone is hidden or how to make it.”

Sera quietly nodded.

‘But I can’t guess why the pages appeared.’

I was getting slightly anxious and was about to hold my head without realizing it.

“Um, excuse me. Seraphina. Could you show me the page about the Yggdrasil seed from earlier?”

“Oh? Yes.”

Suddenly, Pine asked Sera to show him the writing in the book.

Sera immediately found the page and turned to it, and Pine examined the handwriting carefully.

Then, he quietly asked,

“As I thought. The handwriting looks familiar.”

“Familiar?”

“Yes. It’s a bit hazy, but…”

Pine closed his eyes and seemed to be reminiscing about the past.

“…When I was a rookie ranger, there was an adventurer lady who helped me and my friends…”

“Really?”

“After everything was over, she wanted to send a letter to her hometown friend and briefly showed me her handwriting, which looks similar…”

Pine continued to search his memories.

Soon, as if getting impatient, Lumen extended his arm and said,

[Let me examine your mind with magic.]

“Yes. That’s fine.”

Soon Lumen unfolded a magic circle and placed it near Pine.

After a moment, Lumen projected an image of a person in the air.

[This lady.]

“Yes! That’s right!”

It was the face of a woman with long reddish-brown hair.

Just as I was thinking she resembled someone, Pine spoke again.

“Seeing her face, I remember her name. It was definitely Maria.”

Maria.

If there was one person with that name who seemed connected to the Philosopher’s Stone, I knew exactly who it was.

‘Maria Medimaker.’

That was the name of Sera’s grandmother.

“Pine.”

“Yes?”

“Do you remember what kind of conversation you had with that person?”

“Just normal conversation. But… hmm…”

Pine soon closed his eyes and furrowed his brow slightly as if concentrating.

“…Right. She said she was traveling around the world with her adventurer companion.”

“Is that so?”

“She also mentioned wanting to research a strange seed she happened to obtain near the World Tree.”

World Tree.

Strange seed.

“…It seems Sera’s grandmother also obtained and researched the seed of Yggdrasil.”

“It seems so.”

Above all, the book with detailed writings about that seed was evidence.

‘She traveled around the world, huh.’

After thinking for a moment, I carefully asked Pine,

“Do you know where that adventurer said she was going?”

“At that time, she said she was going to the country of the dwarves to find good ore. Back then, the dwarves had opened their country, so entry was relatively free.”

‘The country of the dwarves.’

As I quietly recited Sera’s grandmother’s destination, Sera looked at me.

“Kay.”

“I wonder if we need to go there.”

If dwarves were a long-lived race like elves, there might be dwarves who knew about Sera’s grandmother.

“At least, we might get hints about the book’s secret or the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“…Yes.”

Plus, there was the repair of the holy relic and Chris’s seal.

With that, our destination became clear.

“Let’s go. To the country of the dwarves.”

Everyone nodded at my words.

+

Just because we had decided on a destination didn’t mean we could depart immediately.

Still, we were prepared to leave at any time, so our departure was set for tomorrow.

[I’ll send you to near your next destination with a warp gate.]

Normally, we would need to find a mage through the Magic Tower who could use a warp gate nearby, but this time we had the first Master of the Magic Tower with us.

Naturally, he was skilled enough that using a warp was no problem at all.

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

Warp gates require quite a bit of preparation.

But Lumen raised his hand as if it was no problem at all and said,

[Of course. This is also my way of apologizing.]

Lumen quietly said,

[Though I’d like to continue helping with your journey since I dragged you into this, as you know…]

“The seal has weakened significantly, and the damage to the elves is beyond imagination.”

Lumen nodded at my words.

[I plan to stay here for the time being to restore Einherjar’s seal and help repair the damage to the elves.]

“That’s conscientious of you.”

[It’s only natural. I decided to make this place a battlefield and carried it out. If the damage from that battle is this serious, it’s only right that I help with the recovery.]

Lumen said that and added apologetically,

[If possible, I would have liked to continue supporting you all…]

“It’s fine. Just talking to us here has been enough help.”

Without him, we wouldn’t have found a way to restore my lifespan.

“And helping with the damage recovery here is already a huge help.”

Not knowing how much time I had left, we couldn’t stay to help with the recovery until the end.

But simply turning our backs and leaving felt wrong given the terrible damage the elves had suffered in the fight against the demons.

If Lumen stayed to help with the recovery, we could head to our next destination with a slightly lighter heart, which was a great help in itself.

[If you see it that way, I am truly grateful.]

The words came out of Lumen’s mouth with a small sound of wind.

Apparently, he would have liked to smile.

[I’ll also try to track down the Philosopher’s Stone through various channels, including the Magic Tower.]

“That’s reassuring.”

If the Magic Tower is also searching, it would certainly be a big help.

However, if it was something the Magic Tower could find, Somnus would have found it already, so it was best not to expect too much.

[Anyway, rest well today and depart tomorrow.]

“I want to take care of some things first. There might be ways I can help.”

With Eve, all our supplies were already prepared, but we might need something more.

Besides that, someone might need help, so I needed to go and assist.

[A journey where you help each other along the way.]

Lumen quietly said,

[It must truly be a happy journey.]

I nodded at Lumen’s words.

“I should try not to worry those guys.”

[A good attitude.]

Lumen’s voice carried deep nostalgia.

And soon he quietly said,

[By the way, have you thought about increasing your companions?]

“Would anyone come if I asked?”

We traveled together for various reasons, and we didn’t start by selecting members, so I never thought about bringing in new people from outside.

Besides, between searching for seals, looking for Sera’s grandmother’s workshop, protecting cities, and fighting demons, we’ve been busier than expected, leaving no time to find companions.

[It’s just my personal opinion, but you should consider bringing in more companions.]

Lumen quietly said,

[I don’t mean your group is weak. However, your enemies are no longer just one now.]

I nodded at Lumen’s words.

“So the demons will target us more actively?”

[That’s possible.]

Lumen nodded.

[First, there’s the grudge of the Demon King and the Legion Commanders… but hot-blooded fools might attack you first, thinking they need to defeat you before challenging the Demon King.]

“For that reason?”

[They have a mindset that the strongest is the best. You, who ultimately defeated the injured Demon King, are likely perceived as someone who must be defeated before challenging the Demon King.]

After a brief pause, Lumen quietly said,

[For your safety against threats from enemies who have been targeting you and from demons, you need to gather more companions.]

“I see.”

[Besides, the more companions you have, the less burden on you.]

Lumen quietly said,

[Remember that even though it’s been alleviated, your lifespan is still at a dangerous point.]

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

[Also, using this battle as a stepping stone to improve your fighting techniques…]

He’s quite nagging.

Still, I could tell that Lumen was genuinely concerned about me.

Fortunately, Lumen seemed to notice this and cleared his throat before saying,

[I apologize. I suppose my age makes me worry too much.]

“It’s all helpful advice, so it’s fine.”

As I nodded lightly to the worried Lumen, he stared at me blankly for a moment.

Then he quietly said,

[I suppose your affairs feel very personal to me.]

“Really?”

[Well, it’s like watching the son of a friend.]

Despite being completely unrelated by blood to that hero, Lumen added with a slight smile,

[I’ll be going now. I need to start preparing.]

“Alright.”

His voice was full of nostalgia, so I responded lightly and gave him space.

As I parted ways with Lumen, I fell into thought.

‘The Emiris Order is troublesome enough.’

I thought I wouldn’t have to deal with them in Alfheim, the elven realm, but considering Somnus who boldly invaded and helped summon the Demon King before leaving, these people could appear anywhere without seeming out of place.

The fact that they helped summon the Demon King is true, so I’d like to call them out on it, but the opponent is the continent’s largest religion.

It would be difficult to condemn them based solely on our word.

‘And now demons too.’

There was also Lumen’s warning that demons would likely target us more actively now.

Indeed, we needed companions.

There were a few faces that came to mind.

‘…But most of them are in the Kingdom of Mikea.’

Moreover, among those faces were people who couldn’t move freely because they had their own jobs.

If that’s the case, I should consider who I could call upon immediately.

“Maybe I should invite Pine first.”

I thought it would certainly be reassuring to have a skilled fighter who could stand against Legion Commanders on our side.

‘Let’s discuss it first.’

I can’t make such decisions alone.

With that thought, as I headed toward our carriage, I saw people.

“Eve?”

Perhaps she had more things to pack.

As I quickened my pace, I saw she wasn’t alone at the carriage.

Eve, Sera, and Chris were sitting by the carriage talking to someone.

‘What’s going on?’

I instinctively hid myself and looked toward the carriage.

Then I heard Eve’s voice,

“…So honestly, I’ll suggest it.”

Eve bowed her head slightly and said,

“Miss Pine, would you be willing to travel with us?”

As I got closer, I could see Pine standing with Abies.

[Daughter.]

Pine glanced at Abies, who seemed somewhat expectant.

“I…”

Pine’s lips parted.