Chapter 8: To the Elf Village
The next day, we met with Miss Hofena and Lady Shizuna in front of the Village Chief’s residence, and after being seen off by the Chief and his wife, we departed from the Elf Village of Marulo.
I was taken aback when about ten villagers came to see us off as we exited the castle gates. However, Sfenia explained, “There are quite a few people who are grateful to us. Some were moved by your battle, Soushi-san.”
Although we had merely defeated monsters as adventurers, I decided that such recognition wasn’t entirely unwelcome.
After leaving the village, we quickly turned west on the highway and crossed the mountain pass just as we had on our way here. Since I couldn’t keep both hands bound while walking along the mountain path, I untied the ropes binding Lady Shizuna.
From the very beginning, I had Miss Hofena ride in a backpack, and we crossed the pass in a single day, making sure to progress as far from the mountains as possible.
We walked until just before sunset, which meant we had to camp in a place devoid of farmland. However, with members possessing an Item Box, Barrier Magic, and Water Attribute Magic in our party, camping was a breeze, so there were no issues.
As we settled on the outskirts of the highway, I savored the soup prepared by Miss Hofena. Sitting in a circle around the fire naturally fostered camaraderie, and Lady Shizuna seemed to open up quite a bit, engaging in various conversations.
“I met those individuals in the cursed city of Oz. We formed a party because they were relatively trustworthy within Oz, but I never imagined it would lead to this,” she recounted.
“Were you unaware of which country they hailed from?” I asked.
“They claimed to be from this country. That’s why I was persuaded to come here by them…”
It was likely that the Village Chief had been asked similar questions, but Lady Shizuna showed no signs of discomfort as she spoke.
“There were no suspicious behaviors from them up until now?” I inquired.
“They helped me properly until I reached E-Rank. In fact, they were rather pleasant as adventurers,” she replied.
“Does that mean they were just preparing to deceive you all along? Isn’t that terrible?” Larni interjected, her words blunt yet devoid of malice, prompting Lady Shizuna to simply nod in agreement.
“Ultimately, that seems to be the case. When I think about it, they were quite meticulous. I’m not very savvy about such matters. I should have listened more to my mother’s stories… No, perhaps that’s not necessary.”
“By the way, Lady Shizuna, are you familiar with skills like summoning zombies or controlling golems?” Sfenia asked, disregarding the end of Shizuna’s sentence.
“Indeed, it seems Oz is referred to as a ‘Cursed Nation’ around here. However, what we manipulate are Spirits, which are entirely different from Undead or Golems,” she explained.
“Spirits, you say?”
“I apologize, but that’s a secret of our craft, so I can’t go into detail. However, I assure you that it is not a technique for controlling corpses like the golems we encountered. I understand why one might mistake it for that, though.”
This was quite an intriguing discussion. While the nation of Oz itself seemed to have no diplomatic relations with other countries, it appeared that adventurers could enter and exit freely. Perhaps it would be worth visiting once to acquire some skills.
As I pondered this, Freinir, seemingly intrigued, spoke up.
“Lady Shizuna, can you command these ‘Spirits’?”
“Of course. How about I have a Spirit keep watch tonight? It would be easier than setting a guard,” she suggested.
“You’ll show us a Spirit? I’m looking forward to it!” Freinir exclaimed.
“Well, it’s not exactly the most exciting thing, but let’s give it a try,” Lady Shizuna said, rising to her feet. She began to form a series of hand signs and chant a spell. To my ears, it sounded like a prayer, something akin to “Kashikomi Kashikomi Mōsu.”
As she completed her incantation, the ground suddenly heaved in two places, and the raised earth gradually began to take on a human shape. However, they were only about fifty centimeters tall, more akin to clay figures than actual humans.
The two figures swayed for a moment before beginning to walk freely, as if they possessed their own will. Even though I was becoming accustomed to the monsters of this fantasy world, it was still a fascinating sight.
“This is our craft. We summon and command Spirits, but the Spirits themselves are not physical beings. Therefore, we create a vessel, or Yorishiro, for them. In this case, I simply used clay figures,” she explained.
“That’s amazing… They look almost alive…” Freinir marveled.
“While the vessel is merely clay, the Spirit itself is alive. The key difference is that they are fundamentally different from Golems or Undead,” Lady Shizuna clarified.
“I see, so this is the magic of Oz. It’s incredibly mystical, and I don’t sense any malevolent aura like that of Undead. In fact, it feels almost divine…” Sfenia remarked, to which Lady Shizuna nodded in agreement.
“Indeed. Spirits may be closer to gods than to humans. Now, Frei, could you lower the Barrier a bit? I want these figures to keep watch around us.”
“Yes, understood,” Freinir replied.
As Freinir lowered the Barrier, the two Spirit clay figures dashed off in different directions.
“If they find anything, I will be notified. You can sleep soundly tonight,” Lady Shizuna assured us, a hint of pride in her voice. It was clear that this was a unique skill of theirs, and it made sense for her to take pride in it. If Spirits could scout for us, it would be an incredibly valuable ability for adventurers.
With that, we settled down for the night.
Freinir’s Barrier had leveled up significantly, making it exceptionally strong, and with the Spirits keeping watch, our security was likely better than that of many homes. It made me reflect on what it meant to camp outdoors, but for now, I would simply enjoy the benefits of our situation.