Chapter 635: The Effect of the Weather Vane
I gazed down at the Port Town through the black ghost, enjoying my lunch. It was so dim that I couldn’t tell if it was day or night.
Dean was getting rave reviews for the meat-wrapped rice balls. He seemed to love the sweet and savory sauce, and I thought maybe I should try making teriyaki burgers next. But since he prefers his meat to be really meaty, I wondered if that would work out.
“Having it on a skewer is great; it keeps your hands clean,” Haulon remarked, clearly pleased.
The meat-wrapped rice balls were about the size of inari sushi, and while I could eat them with chopsticks, I made them larger and wrapped them on skewers like American corn dogs. When eating outdoors, I wanted to go all out, but getting my hands dirty was a bit of a hassle.
“We also have cheese-filled meat-wrapped rice balls over here. The inari sushi comes in three varieties: normal, with pickled ginger and sesame, and bamboo shoot rice,” Retze added, seeming to prefer the inari sushi.
Ash was having a banana omelet. I couldn’t help but think about whether that was a suitable choice for a meal, but hey, we were outside! Freedom is nice. He looked happy, after all.
“What kind of meat is this? It has bones,” Dinoss asked, inspecting the dish.
“That’s from the chicken’s wing. I left the bones in, but it’s fried chicken,” I replied, referring to the tulip karaage.
I wasn’t sure if tulips actually grew here, but since there were roses, I figured they might. The straight bones resembled stems, with round, meaty flowers clustered on one side.
“Are there enough bones?” Dinoss questioned.
“I took off the thinner ones,” I explained.
Dinoss, who had temporarily worked as a farmer and had probably butchered chickens before, was having this conversation with me. When the Guild had requests that required staying in the Demon Forest for several days, it was likely that food procurement involved some bird butchering, so he probably had experience with that.
“Hmm. The kids would probably love this,” he said, taking a bite of the tulip karaage.
“When I was a kid, I used to run around the ‘Land of Ruin’ without a care, dreaming of erasing the black ghosts—such fearless fantasies,” Chris murmured, lost in thought.
“With your Spirit Sword, Chris, you could probably do that, right? Though it would only be temporary,” Haulon suggested.
The black ghosts couldn’t truly disappear; they were said to wander this island forever. There were so many of them, and I believed that part was true.
“By the way, why is it called a weather vane?” I asked.
“The rooster heralds the morning and ends the night, symbolizing the cessation of the ghosts’ activities. While it can’t end the night on this ‘Island of Ruin,’ by casting magic on something that represents morning, it makes it seem like there’s bright daylight outside the island. —To prevent them from crawling out and spreading across the dark sea,” Haulon explained seriously.
What could be seen from land belonged to that country. The sea of the ‘Land of Ruin’ was dark, with black shadows writhing like seaweed within it. It seemed that the bright illusion was meant to keep them from spreading through the shadows of rocks and the deep sea. It was as if it said, “Don’t come out; it’s always morning here.”
“Is the one creating the illusion the ‘King’s Branch’?” Retze asked.
The weather vane was said to be facing the castle. More accurately, it was probably directed toward whatever it wanted to make seem like a bright morning.
“No, perhaps it’s the Ruin King? That part isn’t clear,” Haulon said, tilting her head while resting her cheek on her hand.
“The Ruin King… The king from the era when the ‘King’s Branch’ was inverted. I’ve heard he was a compassionate king,” Chris added.
“By the way, who made the weather vane? Did it exist originally, and then Haulon cast magic on it?” I inquired.
From what I gathered, the weather vane originally had the effect of sealing the black ghosts on the island, and when it started to move, its power weakened. Haulon then moved the weather vane back to its original state.
“The weather vane existed originally, but it was my ancestor who cast the magic,” Haulon clarified.
“Your ancestor… So, were they all sages, including the ones who mastered Teleportation?” Dean looked at Haulon.
Haulon’s Teleportation was a secret technique passed down through her family. If it had been passed down through generations, it seemed likely that they were all sages.
“It all started with a magic book, and when the environment was created for gathering and reading all kinds of materials, it has existed since then. The starting point is different,” she explained.
It was a case of gifted education.
“If the weather vane is misaligned again in such a short time, there might be issues with the magic stones placed around the island,” Haulon sighed.
“Are you going to check on them?” I asked, knowing that retrieving the Traveler’s Stones wasn’t urgent.
“It’s not that simple… No, I will ask for your help,” Haulon said, almost denying it but then accepting.
“A place that’s not easy to get to, huh?” Dinoss sighed as well.
“It sounds like we’re about to uncover something legendary, even before the Great Sage’s legend!” Dean said with a bright smile.
“I may not be familiar with the place, but if navigation is hindered, everyone will be in trouble. I’ll help confirm it,” Ash offered.
“If Ash is going, then I will too,” the Butler chimed in.
“Of course, I’ll participate!” Chris added enthusiastically.
“Thank you—though the distances vary, it’s not a difficult place. As long as we have a lamp,” Haulon said, glancing at the lamp near Retze and Ash.
It seemed that the lamp meant for achieving hobbies was about to become a tool for saving the world.