Chapter 31: Destination

I promised Hestia to meet again the next day and returned to the dormitory alone.

Perhaps because most of the students had already left, the inside of the building was quieter than usual.

Just as I was about to enter, a notice posted on the dormitory’s main gate caught my eye.

[Important Notice!]

On the day of the incident, any student (or professor, or other related personnel) who had a face-to-face encounter with the Academy Head is requested to report to the Academy Head’s office immediately.

– Academy Head, Savina.

“……”

‘Has the investigation not been completed yet?’

‘It seems Savina is looking for someone.’

‘Considering she left such a notice even though she must be busy educating (?) the professors, it seems to be quite an urgent matter.’

‘Ugh, who could it be?’

‘Could it be me?’

‘But Savina isn’t the type to go through such trouble just to find me, so it’s probably not me she’s looking for.’

‘Please, it must not be me…’

‘I’m already overwhelmed…!’

Anyway, I ignored the notice, which offered no clues whatsoever, entered my room, and packed my belongings.

Though I called them belongings, there was nothing I needed to pack carefully, so I just stuffed everything I could find into my backpack.

‘Mercenaries would be horrified if they saw this…’

It was such a simple setup, one might think I was going on a picnic.

If the professors had seen it, they would have severely chastised me for being complacent about safety, but there was no reason to show the inside of my backpack to anyone else, so it didn’t matter.

Besides, Hestia isn’t the type to carelessly open someone else’s backpack.

Anyway, the next day arrived without any particular incidents.

“You’re here.”

“Oh, am I a bit late?”

“No. I came out early.”

Hestia and I, meeting early in the morning, exchanged light greetings and walked together through the academy.

The clear, cloudless weather and the cool breeze…

It was a peacefulness that reminded me of the picnic I had briefly imagined the day before.

Perhaps Hestia had a similar thought, as she looked at the clear sky and spoke.

“The weather seems nice.”

“It really is. A day like this would be perfect for a date…”

“……?!!!”

I teased her slightly, and Hestia’s expression changed in real time.

Enjoying her amusing reaction, I also followed her gaze and looked up at the sky.

Unfortunately, what my eyes saw first was not the clear sky, but a colossal magic circle.

‘As expected… it’s impossible.’

Ominous magical energy flowed from the colossal magic circle that would one day bring about ruin…

Though Kal Myers had diligently gathered and absorbed it into his own body recently, it had no effect whatsoever on that magic circle.

Of course, if such a shoddy method could have an effect, it wouldn’t be called the Magic Circle of Ruin.

Ultimately, everyone would consider the events of that day to be a simple incident where morale surged due to the Myers family’s dagger.

Because with ordinary eyes, no matter how much they searched, they wouldn’t find anything special…

It was a moment that made me feel sorry for the Empire, which was still investigating the academy.

“H-hmm… We are still in the getting-to-know-each-other stage, so it’s a bit too early…”

“I’m feeling hungry, so shall we eat first? I’ve discovered another amazing restaurant…”

“……Let’s do that.”

“Oh, did I cut you off? Weren’t you saying something just now?”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“Huh? I’m sure I heard something…”

“I wasn’t.”

“Something about a stage…”

“I wasn’t.”

“Something about it being a bit too early, etc…”

“I said I wasn’t!”

‘My apologies…’

****

After filling our stomachs at the restaurant with Hestia, we immediately left the academy.

Chattering beside her as she walked with a stiff expression, I sensed the opportune moment and discreetly asked about our destination.

“So, where are we going?”

“Hmm, normally we would have stopped by the Imperial Castle first, but this time, I want to focus a bit more on travel.”

‘Travel?’

‘You said it was mercenary work…’

‘Hero, are you deceiving me…?’

“Of course, I will take on mercenary work if I receive requests, but I want to do more exploration.”

“Exploration?”

“I mean places like labyrinths, dungeons, or ruins.”

“Ah, I see…”

Come to think of it, since the Hero spent most of her time alone, it must have been difficult for her to investigate places like ruins.

It seems she never dared to go to such places before, due to the common sense notion that it would be problematic if she wandered into ruins alone without fear and fell into a trap, so she always needed to go with a companion.

So, now that she has a companion to go with, it seems she wants to try exploring.

Honestly, I wouldn’t really recommend it.

Labyrinths, dungeons, and ruins are often frequented by penniless adventurers hoping to turn their lives around.

While valuable treasures do sometimes appear, that’s only by common people’s standards.

For Hestia, the Hero who will one day become a Transcendent, such ordinary treasures are utterly useless.

To find treasures that would be useful to her, one would have to go as far as the distant ‘Graveyard’…

If she were to go there now, it’s obvious her entire body would be torn apart by a single attack from a magic beast.

Since even the lives of Transcendent beings are treated as expendable there, it’s only natural for her, who hasn’t even shed her mortal coil yet.

For now, the only places Hestia can explore are, at best, dangerous locations within the Empire.

Even if she goes now, there will be no danger whatsoever apart from getting lost, and no matter how lucky she gets, she won’t obtain any treasure worth more than a ‘pretty accessory.’

It seems she developed false expectations due to common knowledge that only applies to ordinary people.

If I had my way, I’d tell her the truth and just suggest going somewhere else, but…

“I looked up some related materials in the Academy’s library. I’ve also studied standard traps, so you’ll be safe if you just follow me well. Even if we encounter danger, I will definitely protect you, so you don’t have to worry. Especially with ruins…”

Seeing her so excited, my heart softened.

‘Alright, what can I do if she wants to go herself?’

‘In the first place, I’m merely a porter, so the choice is hers.’

“Hmm, well, shall we do that then? But come to think of it, I’m just following you, Hestia, so do you really need my permission?”

“Still, since I’m indebted to you…”

‘What am I going to do with this pushover, seriously?’

‘If I ever run short on money later, I should try asking Hestia.’

‘She’s not so kind that she’d even give away her Holy Sword, would she?’

“Hoo… Hestia…”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t think I’d ever say something like this… But sometimes, when you live in this world, you need to be shameless.”

“……?”

I decided to keep my advice short here.

‘Because I don’t want Hestia to actually think of me as a grumpy old man…’

“Well, just take what I said with a grain of salt, and so… have you made a decision?”

“A decision?”

“You said you wanted to go to ruins the most. Finding undiscovered ruins inland, not in the Graveyard, is almost impossible, so haven’t you already decided where to go?”

“……Are you saying that ruins cannot be discovered through simple exploration?”

“…? Of course.”

This world is already small, yet uniquely, many Transcendent beings emerge from it.

The continent’s hidden places and ruins were almost entirely unearthed long ago by countless Transcendent beings.

The place where Elisha’s martial arts were buried was unusually unique; it’s now common knowledge that finding fortuitous encounters is impossible.

If one desires true exploration, there’s no choice but to either seek out the Graveyard, as I mentioned earlier, or become a Transcendent and move to another higher dimension.

Unfortunately, Hestia currently has no room to choose between the two.

Therefore, the best she can do, as regrettable as it is, is to visit ruins that have already been explored by others.

‘Surely she didn’t actually not know this…?’

“I see.”

“…Surely you didn’t really not know?”

“D-didn’t I clearly tell you? That I lack worldly experience…”

‘No, you said you researched exploration sites…!’

‘No wonder she kept talking about travel…’

I was about to retort, wanting to argue, but stopped myself.

‘Right, let’s think positively.’

‘These clumsy aspects, perhaps, are the Hero’s own human charm, despite usually being like a machine…’

‘I can somewhat understand why Elisha, the Regressor, always keeps her by her side.’

‘Just being next to her is entertaining…’

“Yes, well… so what are you going to do now?”

“H-hmm… I’ll try to find a suitable ruin to visit even now…”

“Well, all the good ruins are reservation-only… Even if you book now, it seems difficult to get in before the end of vacation. Oh, of course, there are ruins that aren’t reservation-only, but… you know, right?”

“……Are you saying they’re not places suitable for an experience?”

“You’d probably have more fun taking on another mercenary request instead.”

A faint disappointment flickered across Hestia’s expression.

‘She must have had higher expectations than I thought.’

‘I should have known from the moment she, usually so passive, immediately voiced her opinion.’

“It’s regrettable, but it can’t be helped. Things in the world don’t always go as one expects, do they?”

“But this is, merely… because of my mistake…”

“That’s true. It might sound a bit rude as a friend, but Hestia, you seem to be much clumsier than I thought.”

“……”

When I spoke playfully, Hestia’s cheeks flushed slightly.

To her, blushing as if her weakness had been exposed, it was now time to offer a carrot instead of a whip.

“Still, you don’t need to be too disappointed.”

“I’m not disappointed. Of course, I do feel a sense of regret, but…”

“That is disappointment. Anyway, I happened to be lucky enough to hear about the location of a ruin.”

“…From whom?”

‘I hadn’t thought that far…’

‘For now, I’ll just make up an excuse using the easiest person to fool.’

“Was it Elisha…? I just happened to overhear it in passing…”

“Ah…!”

For a moment, Hestia seemed about to pretend she knew, but unexpectedly, she merely nodded as if the name were unfamiliar.

‘So you don’t even want to share friends with someone like me, huh?’

‘How petty, seriously…’

“Elisha is famous in the academy these days, you know. She also fought against you, Hestia, in a spar.”

“…That’s right.”

“Since it came from a famous person, I thought it was reliable information and remembered it. What do you think? Shall we go to that ruin?”

Hestia seemed to ponder for a moment.

‘Her thoughts are obvious.’

‘She’s clearly thinking it’s an act of stealing a ruin that her friend painstakingly discovered.’

‘If she refuses now, well, there’s nothing I can do.’

‘I gave her an opportunity, but if she herself doesn’t want it, what can I do?’

‘More importantly, though I told her to take it with a grain of salt, I clearly told her earlier that there are times when one needs to live selfishly.’

‘If she truly took my words to heart, she wouldn’t suffer any loss.’

‘Well… it’s uncertain how the kind-hearted Hestia will react, though.’

“That… it would be best to ask Elisha for her understanding first…”

“Do you know where she is right now?”

“……I don’t know.”

Elisha had already left the academy long ago.

‘By now, she’s probably busy traveling around, saving the world.’

I shrugged my shoulders, feigning a slight regret, and said.

“It’s a shame, but if you say no, Hestia, there’s nothing I can do. When I think about it carefully, I do feel a bit sorry towards Elisha.”

“You seem to be calling Elisha quite familiarly. Are you two acquainted?”

“I’ve talked to her a few times, yes.”

‘That woman follows me around a lot, you see.’

Since the topic came up, I decided to briefly tell Hestia about Elisha’s exploits (?).

“Our first meeting was probably on enrollment day. She saw me then and, mistaking me for someone else, suddenly embraced me.”

“…Huh? Embraced you?”

“Funny, right? Later, we even took a class together, and when I got hit by a monster’s attack and fell, she personally picked me up and carried me.”

“Personally picked you up…?”

“To be honest, it was embarrassing, but thanks to that, I was comfortable until the end of class.”

“……”

Hestia listened intently to my story until the end, her face expressionless.

‘I tried to make it funny, but it seems she didn’t find it amusing.’

Just as I was about to speak, trying to change the subject before an awkward silence settled…

Hestia grabbed my arm first and spoke.

“……Guide me.”

“Huh?”

“I would like you to guide me to the ruin.”

“But you just said you wouldn’t go…”

“I never once said I wouldn’t go.”

“Eh…?”

And so, the first destination for her and me was decided: the ruin.