The Road to the Wizard Kingdom on the Haliart Continent
It seems that reaching the Wizard Kingdom, which is said to be atop a mountain, is unavoidable. Once we pass through this flat road, the next challenge will be to climb a steep slope. There were no travelers on the tree-lined path. It’s no wonder, as no one is allowed to enter or exit the heavily guarded Wizard Kingdom. I searched for any requests to hunt down the ones attacking the Wizard Kingdom, but there were none at all. Apparently, there are restrictions coming from the Wizard Kingdom itself. If they’re in trouble, they should just ask Adventurers for help, but I wonder why they don’t.
Still, I’ve gathered enough information to have a rough idea of what we’re up against.
“I wonder if the Golem is really that big.”
It seems that a group of monsters known as Golems is attacking the Wizard Kingdom. They’re described as stone figures or rock beings, depending on who you ask.
“Well… from what I hear, magic and weapon attacks hardly affect them, so they’re quite formidable. I think they’re similar to the Floor Monsters that Ritta defeated in the Mithril Mine.”
As we trudged along, we speculated about the unknown enemy. However, there was a more pressing issue at hand: whether we could even enter the Wizard Kingdom. There was no information, and we had no means of entering. But I had no intention of giving up after coming this far. If they wouldn’t let us in, I would simply have to plead with them. I don’t understand why other Adventurers aren’t seeking help, but I’m sure that if I ask sincerely for assistance in defeating the Golems, they’ll understand.
“If I take down the Golems one by one, the Wizard Kingdom will be safe, right?”
“But we don’t even know how many there are, and we probably need to defeat their leader first.”
The leader, a man with an arm made of rock. There are only eyewitness accounts of him, and no one knows where he is. All we know is that someone saw him among the Golem army.
“Maybe he’s one of the Twelve Demon Generals.”
“If that’s the case, I won’t forgive them. What do those Demon Lord Army guys want anyway?”
“We really don’t know anything… Even the King of Avangarde won’t tell us.”
“Do you think Sage Hast would tell us?”
“Before that, I wonder if we can really get into the Wizard Kingdom…”
“If they won’t let us in, I’ll force my way in.”
“Eh…?”
Roel was left speechless. I had meant it half as a joke, but it seemed she took it seriously. But we’re humans, and they’re Golems. Why wouldn’t they let us in? If we explain the situation, they might understand. Besides, Truppo should be in that country. He should know us and explain things to everyone else.
“I wonder how Truppo is doing. It hasn’t been that long, but I already miss him.”
“Yeah, I think Truppo would let us in.”
It seems that the distance from Port Platz to the Wizard Kingdom can be covered on foot in just a day. The mountain path along the way is well-maintained, so we won’t get lost. Truppo told me that Port Platz and the Wizard Kingdom have a mutual supply relationship, so the road is well-kept. Once we pass through this flat road, the next challenge will be to climb a steep slope. There were no travelers on the tree-lined path.
“Hey, Roel, how much longer do you think this road will go on?”
“The Wizard Kingdom is up on that mountain over there, so once we reach the foot of it, we’ll be there soon.”
Once we pass through this flat road, the next challenge will be to climb a steep slope. There were no travelers on the tree-lined path.
“We’ve been walking for quite a while, haven’t we?”
“Hasn’t it only been about an hour?”
“Even so, it doesn’t feel like we’re getting any closer to that mountain.”
“Stop complaining and just keep walking.”
“Okay.”
Since I got scolded, I had no choice but to fall silent. Once we pass through this flat road, the next challenge will be to climb a steep slope. There were no travelers on the tree-lined path.
“Roel, this is definitely strange.”
“That’s why I said complaining won’t help…”
“That tree with the broken branch was there earlier too. In fact, this is the fourth time!”
“Isn’t it just a coincidence?”
“There aren’t that many trees with the same branch broken. Roel, let me carry you on my back.”
“W-Why?”
“Just do it.”
Reluctantly, Roel climbed onto my back. I then dashed towards the mountain. Yes, I was definitely moving forward. But even as I sprinted, the trees didn’t sway in the wind, and leaves didn’t scatter. Something was clearly off.
“Lua-chan, why are you in such a hurry?!”
“Even after running this much, the distance to that mountain isn’t shrinking at all! It’s strange!”
“Now that you mention it…”
“Damn it, why didn’t I notice this sooner! Roel, hold on tight!”
No matter how fast I ran, I couldn’t get closer to the mountain where the Wizard Kingdom stood. It felt like I was running towards a painting. Suddenly, the mountain blurred and vanished like mist. The distant scenery began to change, revealing Port Platz. The entrance of the port seemed to open wide, welcoming me back. It was as if it was saying, “Welcome back.”
“Wha-what?! Why? Did we come back?”
“Yeah, we didn’t make any progress at all. In fact, we were just going around in circles.”
“W-What do you mean?”
“The path we were walking on was an illusion, and that illusionary path diverged from the real one. We thought we were walking straight, but that path was curving slightly. We were just tricked into walking towards the vanished fake Wizard Kingdom.”
“U-Um, so we were lured by the illusion of the Wizard Kingdom and ended up walking on an illusory path? And seeing Port Platz means we’ve gone around in a half-circle? But why did the fake Wizard Kingdom suddenly disappear?”
“Maybe it’s telling us to give up since walking is pointless.”
I had no idea who did this or why. It had been a while since I encountered illusion magic, and I had let my guard down. Who was using it back then? I felt like they were quite close.
I set Roel down and drew my sword. If they didn’t show themselves, I’d attack randomly around here, silently conveying my intent. The real Port Platz, and the Wizard Kingdom looming behind it. I stayed silent for a while, but there was no sign of anyone coming out. I knew they were hiding among the illusions. If possible, I didn’t want to resort to violence.
“Whoever you are, dispel the magic! Why are you doing this?!”
My voice echoed across the plain, but there was no response. I was starting to get irritated. It could be the Neo Demon Lord Army, and if that’s the case, there’s no need to hold back. Gripping the hilt tightly, I prepared to unleash the Sonic Ripper at any moment. I needed to keep Roel close to me. The Sonic Ripper I was about to unleash would spread out in a circular pattern from me. Since it could cause collateral damage, I hadn’t used it until now, but there was no one in sight.
Yes, if no one is around, then whatever I do shouldn’t bother anyone. The Sonic Ripper is a technique I developed to gain an advantage against opponents that are troublesome to approach. I succeeded quickly, but it initially had less power than a normal slash, which made it difficult at first. Thanks to that struggle, it now delivers almost the same power as in close combat. Even so, it was erased by Vandalsia’s Catastrophe.
“If no one is around, I’m going to attack! If no one is around!”
Just to be sure, I called out loudly, but there was no reaction at all. They were quite stubborn. I was curious about who they were, so I decided to suppress my power as much as possible to avoid killing them. I leveled my sword and crouched down, readying myself for a spin.
Lua unleashed the Sonic Ripper!
The slash released from me cut through the trees lining the path. The severed trees tilted in various directions, crashing to the ground with a sound of splintering branches. But that was all. This was enough.
“I held back quite a bit just now! If you don’t come out, I’ll get serious next time! I can easily unleash enough power to reach that port town!”
This was my final warning. If they didn’t show themselves, I was truly going to unleash my full power, regardless of who or what they were. I couldn’t afford to be delayed any longer. But I was only taking this roundabout approach because I wanted to resolve things peacefully if possible. I had no intention of showing mercy, whether they were monsters or humans. That’s how frustrated I was at this moment.
“Oh, look, Lua-chan!”
Was my warning effective? The scenery around us began to dissolve into sand, scattering away. It was the moment the illusionary landscape was lifted. Just as I thought, the port town was real, and everything else was an illusion. When I turned around, the tree-lined path we thought was the real one was slowly curving away, gradually turning to sand and disappearing. Only the trees I had cut down remained real.
Unexpectedly, the real tree-lined path and the Wizard Kingdom standing on the mountain came into view.
Finally, I could see the true road to the Wizard Kingdom. I had thought we were walking straight from the port town, but in reality, the path curved slightly to the right. In other words, we had been walking in the wrong direction, thinking we were going straight without veering off to the right.
“Wow, it really was an illusion…”
“Thank you for dispelling it.”
The one I addressed emerged cautiously from the shadow of a real tree. He was a boy wearing a pointed hat like Truppo, with light brown hair and prominent freckles around his nose. A strange patterned scarf was wrapped around his neck, and he wore thin fabric clothes paired with shorts that reached just below his thighs—similar to what I was wearing. He looked about the same age as Platiu, but somehow more childish. Despite his fearful expression, he kept his distance from us. I never expected such a small opponent, and both Roel and I were momentarily at a loss for words.
“Were you the one who created that illusion?”
“…Is that a problem?”
I had to suppress the urge to retort that it was indeed a problem. He seemed to tremble slightly, perhaps out of fear of me.
“Why did you do something like this?”
“Rua-chan, he’s just a kid. Hey, what’s your name?”
“Rash… um, that is…”
He fidgeted, intertwining his index fingers as if he wanted to say something. Then, as if gathering his resolve, he suddenly knelt down.
“I have a favor to ask of you, big sisters! Please save the Wizard Kingdom!”
“Are you a child of the Wizard Kingdom? When you say save it, do you mean…?”
“Um, I don’t really know how to explain this! I’m sorry about the illusion! The King and all the adults said they can’t involve people from other countries! But I couldn’t just sit and do nothing, so I ended up doing this… Lord Hast said it would be okay to bring someone if they could see through my illusions…”
He was so excited that I could hardly follow what he was saying, but Roel managed to calm him down and piece it together. This boy was a wizard from the Wizard Kingdom. The people of the kingdom had insisted they wouldn’t seek help from outsiders, yet the damage caused by the Golems was only getting worse. However, Lord Hast had allowed this boy to come out under the condition that he would scout for capable individuals. That condition was that the person must be able to see through Rash’s illusions.
We had come all the way to the port town, but it wasn’t like we could just approach strangers and test them, leaving us at a loss. So it seemed we had appeared before him, intending to sneak into the Wizard Kingdom, which was supposed to be on high alert. The way he described our approach felt a bit cheeky, but I decided to keep that to myself.
“I see, I see. But if that was the case, you should have told us from the start. You wasted our time.”
“Because, because… it was Lord Hast’s orders… Um, if it’s an older brother, you can defeat the Golems, right? Most of my magic, including my illusions, doesn’t work on them. Because of that, the castle walls and magical barriers have been crumbling!”
“Yeah, yeah, that sounds serious… Wait, older brother?”
“Rash-kun, Rua-chan is a girl…”
“Eh, eh? But she doesn’t have any breasts and is dressed like a boy…”
I think this was the first time I had ever been mocked like this. However, I decided to forgive him, considering he was just a child. After all, I was an older sister. An adult.