"What were you doing here, Bionte-san?"
When Kyo asked, Bionte responded with a friendly smile before starting to speak.
"Well, you know, isn't the <Ketzal> getting really close now? My calculations say there's a big chance that some kind of meteor or disaster will happen in Hyperborea. It only happens every tens of thousands of years, you know? I couldn't just do nothing. I wanted to be there, in the front row, to see it all happen. But, I never thought I'd end up lost in this forest. I always thought I was good at traveling, but is this the famous ancient grove? Oh, wait, I guess I'm still in the wrong place. Hahaha. So here I am, running out of food, things not going well at all, and I find this village. I just wanted to get some food."
"Sneaking, in."
"No, no. I went in after saying hi, but it seemed they were in the midst of a commotion surrounding an elf lady over there. A small halfling like me probably didn't even register in their field of vision. So, reluctantly, while inspecting the food storehouse alone, I found some delicious tobacco. I couldn't resist so I ended up taking it without paying. And then, when they finally noticed me because of the tobacco smoke, it ended up like this. Wahaha."
After saying all that, Bionte stood up.
"Well, there's no point in sticking around stubbornly now. I'll go back to Meteor Lake for the time being. Thanks for helping. It's good that you're safe too. I tried convincing these orcs in every way possible, but they wouldn't listen. You're lucky to have such good friends, elf lady. Okay then."
He shook my hand, shook Tiriel's hand, and shook Kyo's hand, and the acorn-hat man ran off in a hurry.
"Halfling?"
"A race of small stature. quick and good at stealth. Gevaudan-san isn't completely wrong about the sneaky thing. That old man did seem a bit suspicious. Sure, archaeology might sound trustworthy, but he might just be a plain grave robber."
"Sly. Fast. sneaky."
"Gevaudan-san, when dealing with adventurers, it's best not to interfere unless there's a compelling reason. If you catch the attention of the Adventurer's Insurance Association, you will not be accepted everywhere you go."
"Perfect crime."
"What do you mean...?"
"No, evidence, leave nothing. behind."
"Huh? Uwaaah!? Stop! I don't want to hear that! I don't want to hear the rest!!"
Even with the strange stuff happening, we're done with what we needed to do in this village, at least for now.
It's already nighttime. Need to figure out something to do until morning. I told the orcs that as long as they kept to themself, I wouldn't cause any problems and said we were done here. The rest is up to them.
The orcs didn't budge from their spot.
If I go left, they go left. If I go right, they go right. At this rate, it seems they'll follow me all the way to Hazafungi. How troublesome.
As I approached the limits of my endurance.
*Clang.*
A high-pitched sound echoed. Looking, Yakumo was playing in the center of the square.
Looking closer, I could see he was hitting something with a stone.
"Yakumo-san, what are you doing?"
"He's hitting something."
The two peered into Yakumo's strange behavior.
"...Ah, this. It's a wedge. Gevaudan-san, Yakumo-san just hammered a wedge he picked up from a treasure chest into the ground! What should we do?"
...Letting him do as he pleases...?
I thought so, but it's not good to get his hands dirty before a meal. I told Kyo to stop him.
"Yakumo-san, I understand you're excited about getting a new toy, but it's already late. Let's play when we get back, okay?"
Yakumo, having his sides grabbed from behind, was pulled along without resistance. He's like a cat.
However, Yakumo is a bit different today.
When he was released from Kyo's hand, he immediately approached the wedge and went *Clang Clang* again.
Released and came back. Released and came back. He seems really attached to that wedge.
"What's, wrong?"
When I approached and asked, Yakumo went *Sunn~* and looked up at me silently, giving me a cold stare like his older sister.
*Clang! Clang!* *Sunn~* *Clang! Clang!* Sunn~*
The wedge is already all in. He's basically digging it at this point.
"Does he want to drive this in?"
I took out a giant hammer from my bag. It was my favorite butcher hammer, plundered from the Jiangshi woman Yufan.
Despite being wooden, this hammer boasted immeasurable weight and hardness. It had proven its impact power by crushing the Despot, an 88's new weapon that resembled a crab monster.
"Everyone, step back."
I swung the hammer with all my might, aiming at the wedge.
Heave... ho!
With all my strength, I struck down, and an unknown sound echoed.
Another one. Heave... ho!
――Boom!
Instantly, a strong force pushed back, and the hammer was pushed away.
As I stood there, the place suddenly filled with a golden-tinged rain. It was warm, and the surroundings were instantly covered in steam.
Without understanding what happened, I peeked at the source of the disturbance.
From the gap in the wedge, a fountain was gushing out vigorously.
"Huh, wait... could it be!?"
With a puzzled look on her face, Tiriel raised her hands and gazed at the golden water collected in her palms.
"A Leyline Spring...?"
"What's, that?"
"A spring of magical power that gushes from a Leyline."
Come to think of it, I've seen this color before.
In the underground of the cave that served as my base, Titania had dug a spring. It was much lighter in color than that spring, but quite similar. It had a slightly viscous texture.
"Oh, this is..." A priest-like orc stood up, his voice trembling.
"It's a wellspring of blessings."
"No way."
"That child..."
The eyes of the orcs were focused on Yakumo.
Somehow, I felt like revealing Yakumo's third eye by taking off his Major League cap. Ta-da!
"As I thought! The ancient one..."
A priest orc approached Yakumo and then prostrated himself.
"O Messenger sent by Urbianus... lend us your guidance as we tread the path astray..."
Other orcs did the same, bowing down to Yakumo. The power of the third eye was amazing.
"What's, this? What's, going, on?"
"Mifosis is running out of magic," Tiriel answered.
"So, natural Leyline springs like this are very precious. Any city over a certain size must have leylines or dungeons to sustain itself."
Tiriel explained the value of Leyline springs. That's why Yakumo, who had found it so easily, probably gathered such supernatural admiration from the orcs.
Well, whatever.
Still, who subjected the orcs to such cruel treatment for them to act all desperate like this? I cleared up the unsightly orc kebabs in the square, burying them in the ground for evidence disposal. Along the way, I dug a hole around the fountain, quickly setting up a makeshift bathing area. Since it's here, might as well.
The amount of water from the Leyline spring was tremendous, and although it became a large open-air bath with the hands of the walking heavy machinery known as Gevaudan, the work took only about an hour.
"How about some feathers?"
"Well, face paint is more fitting for a prophet. Let's use clay. By the way, what's with this third eye on his forehead? I thought it was fake, but it's real. It wasn't there when we were together last time."
"Gevaudan-san said he was sick."
"What do you mean, sick?"
"After wrapping up the heavy work and coming back, Kyo and Tiriel were giving Yakumo a prophetic makeover.
They were making sure the orcs wouldn't change their minds by reinforcing our persuasive factor. But, to be honest, it seemed more like they got bored waiting and decided to try playing dolls dressing, finding it fun. Playing with calm animals releases happy hormones, you know. Let me give it a try too.
Thus, an overly decorated shaman, seemingly from the depths of the Amazon was born, but it's quite fitting. Trying to make him sit on a high seat, he went "Sunn~" The founder of the cool orc hot spring sat there, looking all grand and imposing. It's really funny.
We've had our fun. Now, let's hop in the bath, wash off the dirt, and freshen up.
"What were you doing here, Bionte-san?"
When Kyo asked, Bionte responded with a friendly smile before starting to speak.
"Well, you know, isn't the <Ketzal> getting really close now? My calculations say there's a big chance that some kind of meteor or disaster will happen in Hyperborea. It only happens every tens of thousands of years, you know? I couldn't just do nothing. I wanted to be there, in the front row, to see it all happen. But, I never thought I'd end up lost in this forest. I always thought I was good at traveling, but is this the famous ancient grove? Oh, wait, I guess I'm still in the wrong place. Hahaha. So here I am, running out of food, things not going well at all, and I find this village. I just wanted to get some food."
"Sneaking, in."
"No, no. I went in after saying hi, but it seemed they were in the midst of a commotion surrounding an elf lady over there. A small halfling like me probably didn't even register in their field of vision. So, reluctantly, while inspecting the food storehouse alone, I found some delicious tobacco. I couldn't resist so I ended up taking it without paying. And then, when they finally noticed me because of the tobacco smoke, it ended up like this. Wahaha."
After saying all that, Bionte stood up.
"Well, there's no point in sticking around stubbornly now. I'll go back to Meteor Lake for the time being. Thanks for helping. It's good that you're safe too. I tried convincing these orcs in every way possible, but they wouldn't listen. You're lucky to have such good friends, elf lady. Okay then."
He shook my hand, shook Tiriel's hand, and shook Kyo's hand, and the acorn-hat man ran off in a hurry.
"Halfling?"
"A race of small stature. quick and good at stealth. Gevaudan-san isn't completely wrong about the sneaky thing. That old man did seem a bit suspicious. Sure, archaeology might sound trustworthy, but he might just be a plain grave robber."
"Sly. Fast. sneaky."
"Gevaudan-san, when dealing with adventurers, it's best not to interfere unless there's a compelling reason. If you catch the attention of the Adventurer's Insurance Association, you will not be accepted everywhere you go."
"Perfect crime."
"What do you mean...?"
"No, evidence, leave nothing. behind."
"Huh? Uwaaah!? Stop! I don't want to hear that! I don't want to hear the rest!!"
Even with the strange stuff happening, we're done with what we needed to do in this village, at least for now.
It's already nighttime. Need to figure out something to do until morning. I told the orcs that as long as they kept to themself, I wouldn't cause any problems and said we were done here. The rest is up to them.
The orcs didn't budge from their spot.
If I go left, they go left. If I go right, they go right. At this rate, it seems they'll follow me all the way to Hazafungi. How troublesome.
As I approached the limits of my endurance.
*Clang.*
A high-pitched sound echoed. Looking, Yakumo was playing in the center of the square.
Looking closer, I could see he was hitting something with a stone.
"Yakumo-san, what are you doing?"
"He's hitting something."
The two peered into Yakumo's strange behavior.
"...Ah, this. It's a wedge. Gevaudan-san, Yakumo-san just hammered a wedge he picked up from a treasure chest into the ground! What should we do?"
...Letting him do as he pleases...?
I thought so, but it's not good to get his hands dirty before a meal. I told Kyo to stop him.
"Yakumo-san, I understand you're excited about getting a new toy, but it's already late. Let's play when we get back, okay?"
Yakumo, having his sides grabbed from behind, was pulled along without resistance. He's like a cat.
However, Yakumo is a bit different today.
When he was released from Kyo's hand, he immediately approached the wedge and went *Clang Clang* again.
Released and came back. Released and came back. He seems really attached to that wedge.
"What's, wrong?"
When I approached and asked, Yakumo went *Sunn~* and looked up at me silently, giving me a cold stare like his older sister.
*Clang! Clang!* *Sunn~* *Clang! Clang!* Sunn~*
The wedge is already all in. He's basically digging it at this point.
"Does he want to drive this in?"
I took out a giant hammer from my bag. It was my favorite butcher hammer, plundered from the Jiangshi woman Yufan.
Despite being wooden, this hammer boasted immeasurable weight and hardness. It had proven its impact power by crushing the Despot, an 88's new weapon that resembled a crab monster.
"Everyone, step back."
I swung the hammer with all my might, aiming at the wedge.
Heave... ho!
With all my strength, I struck down, and an unknown sound echoed.
Another one. Heave... ho!
――Boom!
Instantly, a strong force pushed back, and the hammer was pushed away.
As I stood there, the place suddenly filled with a golden-tinged rain. It was warm, and the surroundings were instantly covered in steam.
Without understanding what happened, I peeked at the source of the disturbance.
From the gap in the wedge, a fountain was gushing out vigorously.
"Huh, wait... could it be!?"
With a puzzled look on her face, Tiriel raised her hands and gazed at the golden water collected in her palms.
"A Leyline Spring...?"
"What's, that?"
"A spring of magical power that gushes from a Leyline."
Come to think of it, I've seen this color before.
In the underground of the cave that served as my base, Titania had dug a spring. It was much lighter in color than that spring, but quite similar. It had a slightly viscous texture.
"Oh, this is..." A priest-like orc stood up, his voice trembling.
"It's a wellspring of blessings."
"No way."
"That child..."
The eyes of the orcs were focused on Yakumo.
Somehow, I felt like revealing Yakumo's third eye by taking off his Major League cap. Ta-da!
"As I thought! The ancient one..."
A priest orc approached Yakumo and then prostrated himself.
"O Messenger sent by Urbianus... lend us your guidance as we tread the path astray..."
Other orcs did the same, bowing down to Yakumo. The power of the third eye was amazing.
"What's, this? What's, going, on?"
"Mifosis is running out of magic," Tiriel answered.
"So, natural Leyline springs like this are very precious. Any city over a certain size must have leylines or dungeons to sustain itself."
Tiriel explained the value of Leyline springs. That's why Yakumo, who had found it so easily, probably gathered such supernatural admiration from the orcs.
Well, whatever.
Still, who subjected the orcs to such cruel treatment for them to act all desperate like this? I cleared up the unsightly orc kebabs in the square, burying them in the ground for evidence disposal. Along the way, I dug a hole around the fountain, quickly setting up a makeshift bathing area. Since it's here, might as well.
The amount of water from the Leyline spring was tremendous, and although it became a large open-air bath with the hands of the walking heavy machinery known as Gevaudan, the work took only about an hour.
"How about some feathers?"
"Well, face paint is more fitting for a prophet. Let's use clay. By the way, what's with this third eye on his forehead? I thought it was fake, but it's real. It wasn't there when we were together last time."
"Gevaudan-san said he was sick."
"What do you mean, sick?"
"After wrapping up the heavy work and coming back, Kyo and Tiriel were giving Yakumo a prophetic makeover.
They were making sure the orcs wouldn't change their minds by reinforcing our persuasive factor. But, to be honest, it seemed more like they got bored waiting and decided to try playing dolls dressing, finding it fun. Playing with calm animals releases happy hormones, you know. Let me give it a try too.
Thus, an overly decorated shaman, seemingly from the depths of the Amazon was born, but it's quite fitting. Trying to make him sit on a high seat, he went "Sunn~" The founder of the cool orc hot spring sat there, looking all grand and imposing. It's really funny.
We've had our fun. Now, let's hop in the bath, wash off the dirt, and freshen up.
