293 290. Underground Street.txt (2/2)

Everywhere you look, the flames are blazing, and although it's good to get down, you can't find your way forward.

'It looks a lot like Alti's Hierarchy: ......

The scene immediately reminded me of Arti's hierarchy of the ten levels of the labyrinth. However, I thought that the essence of it was completely different.

Arti's hierarchy was filled with a special 'unextinguishable flame'. The flames that continued to burn even if there was nothing to burn were the ones that Arti's grudge felt.

In contrast, the flames in this underground city were gentle. It is indeed hot. It has a harshness that doesn't attract people. However, it does not burn the surrounding town. It is a fire that never burns out anything, even if there is something to burn.

The fact that the underground mall is still alive and well despite being swallowed up by the flames is a bizarre sight.

But from that particular 'flame that never burns', I am convinced of Maria's existence.

'Maria!　Call me back if you're there!　It's me!　Everyone's here too!

I felt the power of the ”One Who Steals the Reason of Fire” and I speak to the flames. If Maria shared her perceptions with the flames, then this should convey our arrival.

However, after shouting, I waited for nearly a minute, but there was no response from the flames.

Whether Maria is not within the blockaded area or is in a situation where she can't reply ...... cannot be determined.

It's a hassle not to be able to use magic 《Dimension》 at a time like this. I have no choice but to look around the underground city with my eyes.

I immediately build a dimensional magic in my body and change my magic power to the freezing attribute. It's a technique that consumes quite a bit of magic power, but it allows me to use a different attribute of magic.

I hold up my hand and try to extinguish the fire with the opposite attribute of the flame.

''-- Freeze Magic [Freeze]''

I remember the old feeling and expand my magic power.

I know that the flames in this underground town are magic, so it's a feeling of doing 'magic offset (counter magic)'.

With the effect of my 《Freeze》, a hole is created in one of the surrounding flames. I really wanted to extinguish all the flames, but the magic of the flames was too dense and it was all I could do to create a tunnel.

Passing through the tunnel of flames, we start walking towards the back of the underground city. The area around us is covered in flames, but we manage to withstand the heat since we're maintaining the 《Freeze》. We have no trouble exploring the underground city.

If it comes down to it, I can further adjust the temperature with Ryner's wind magic, and even if I get burned, I have a recovery spell.

I bullishly made a path with the Freeze and proceeded deeper and deeper into the underground city. If I keep going, I should be able to contact another reason why this underground city is sealed off.

As I walk, I think back to the information in the materials of the ”Saint's Abduction Case”.

It wasn't just about the saint that was written. As I recall, there was information that 'even if you clear the flame problem, there is an unidentified monster beyond it'.

According to the information gathered by the adventurers who challenged it earlier, it seems that it 'deals with dark-attribute magic,' 'can slash you from anywhere,' and 'can hear a terrifying voice that chills you from the depths of your stomach.

The adventurer's guild is rumored to have a Grim Reaper brought by a witch residing in the underground city.

This is a very familiar characteristic.

This may be a bad event that adventurers are prepared to die for, but for me, it will be a long-awaited good event!

So I'm not afraid of the unidentified monsters, and I keep going and going. The party behind me feels like a picnic.

At last the monster appears while we are wandering around the underground mall.

The whole area is in flames, but we can hear its voice without it showing itself.

Adventurers ....... Turn back ....... It's hell from here on out. It's not ...... a lie. There's a really scary one in the back .......

The moment I heard the voice, a chill ran down my spine.

Immediately I recognize the dark-attribute mental interference magic on that voice. Perhaps it's a magic that causes fear without the other party noticing.

I shake my head, dismissing the fear sticking to my back and imagining a more terrifying future.

'There's no turning back ....... Going back here would probably be even scarier.

Are you sure?　If you proceed, the Grim Reaper will curse you for that?　I'm going to put a curse on you, like, ”One of these days you'll be stabbed to death by a member of the opposite s*x in the back”?　Are you sure you want to do this?

'No, you can curse, but why would you choose such a pinpoint curse: ......

No matter how much I put the magic of fear on it and act like it, it hasn't changed until the quality of her voice. Reassured by the familiar girl's voice, I move forward, chatting and laughing.

'You've ignored my advice: ......!　Then go to ......!

As I continue to walk, a magical force containing the will to fight is hurled at me.

The source of this is from my blind spot. However, I knew beforehand that they would definitely attack from my blind spot, so I leisurely pulled out the Alais family's treasured sword, Loewen, from my possessions and set out to intercept them.

-- A nostalgic metallic sound rings out.

A black scythe slice extends from within my shadow and I flick it as I turn around. Thus, having dealt with the Grim Reaper's surprise attack with ”sensitivity,” the Good event of joining the group begins.

A brown-skinned girl crawls out of the shadows and sends a casual greeting.

''--Hmm, it looks like the real thing after all!　It's not fake, and it's not under any weird magic. Most importantly, there's Rowen. Long time no see, brother.

I reply to that as I put my sword away.

'Yeah, long time no see. Sorry to keep you waiting, Reaper.

He reunited with the Reaper, looking the same as he once did, and apologized for the opening.

But the Reaper shakes his head, shaking his long black hair. Just like a year ago, he admonishes me with a calm demeanor not befitting his age.

I didn't wait that long. I've been playing around a lot. ...... So, would you like it to be someone else who apologizes, not me, but your sister Maria?

...... All right. I knew Maria was here, didn't I?

There was a lot of things I wanted to apologize for over and over again, but I swallowed the words and made it a priority to join them.

''Yeah. ...... Maria Auntie doesn't have a bit of time to spare, so Atachi has been keeping an eye on the city instead. I'll show you around in a minute. This way, this way, this way...

The Reaper walks forward and beckons her forward. Then the flames in her path disappear on their own.

Perhaps there is now a 'connection' between the Reaper and Maria. He is using that ”connection” to manipulate the flames born by Maria to create a path.

I was about to follow the Reaper's back to tell him more about it, but before I could, my friends passed me and started talking to me.

Rustyala and Snow say, ”It's been a while,” while Ragne and Ryner introduce themselves, and finally, Reaper is happy to see Dia back. I don't want to take away from everyone's reunion, so I stay quiet in the back after the greetings.

However, in the middle of that banter, Rustyala is the first to hear what I was going to ask at the right time.

''--NeNeNe, Reaper. Are you still here?　There's that saint, that little Nosfy Foozeyers.

Yes, I'm here. I'm with my sister Maria now.

The story surprises me and I shout out from behind me.

'What, you two are together ......?'

'I'm with you. Say hi to Mr. Nosfi, he's on his way.

The Reaper turns around and says something very challenging.

The women, who didn't know Nosfi's personality, seemed at ease, but only Ryner looked as uncomfortable as I did.

''Yes, we've arrived! This is our base of operations!

We've made a lot of progress while chatting, and we reach the largest building in the underground area. It seems that the Reapers are living underground by illegally occupying this place.

It's a mansion that seems to belong to a middle-class aristocrat.

It is wrapped in a wreath of fire and refuses everything that comes its way.

Through a reasonably large garden and entrance, they enter the back of the mansion. Then, led by the Reaper, we enter a single room.

It's a large room.

A fine fireplace is lit in the center of the wall side, and a painting is displayed at the top.

A long table was placed across the room in the center, with more than ten chairs in a row. It was probably the mansion's dining room, or dining room.

At the end of the table in that room sat two girls.

Maria, a girl with dark hair, and Nosfi, a girl with chestnut-colored hair.

The two girls were not hostile, but were chatting casually with drinks between them.

Maria had a cloth wrapped around her eyes and her attire had changed a bit from before.

Nosfi's clothes have changed entirely. No, it would be more accurate to say that she was being put in restraints rather than changed.

She was wrapped around her body in what looked like a bandage over the frilly black clothing she had seen before. If you looked closely, you could see that the bandages were covered with small letters written all over them. It's a fashion that reminds me of the 'spell cloth' of Arti, the 'one who steals the reason for fire' of the past.

However, unlike Arti, Nosfi is wrapped in such a way that both hands are disabled.

After confirming their appearance, the two people in the room also notice their visitor (here).

'Kanami-san ......?'

Maria reacted before anyone else and stood up, calling her name.

A fireball floats in the room. She must have sensed my coming by the flames.

She turns her face to me, shakes her dark hair, and wanders off to walk towards me.

'Maria ......'

To which I reply.

We call each other by name to confirm.

That's when Maria was convinced that I was not an illusion. She walked straight up to me and hugged me tightly.

Maria put her hands slightly above my waist, pressed her face to my chest and murmured without showing any expression.

'I'm sorry ....... I was going to talk to you about a lot of things when we meet, but ...... let me do this for a little while. ...... Just for a little while .......

I can't use Dimension now.

I can't see the hidden expression on her face.

But by intertwining our magic with each other, I can understand Maria's battle up to today - the hardships that have resulted from the accumulation of these battles.

I'm going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to get the best out of it.