Volume 5 Chapter 3 - The old man wields the divine sword. (1/2)

We began our journey on our dependable Raptor carriage to the village of snow and ice, Kritarus. After passing through the road east of Grannel, we began heading towards the northern mountains. At our current pace, we would most likely arrive within five days, which was half the time a normal horse carriage would take.

As usual, I was on the horseman seat while Luna was sitting on my lap leaning her back onto my body.

[Yuuya, it’s starting to feel cold.] (Luna)

[You’re right. It’ll only get colder from here. Let’s stop by a store to get some winter clothing later.] (Yuuya)

Luna was much more forceful than usual in leaning her body onto mine.

It was already the second day since we left Grannel but the chilly northern winds have already started to blow as she swiftly moved her tail up from under her crotch and hugged it.

[It’s so fluffy and warm~.] (Luna)

That was extremely cute.

[That looks nice and warm.] (Yuuya)

[Uhn. In that case, Luna will share the warmth with Yuuya.] (Luna)

Just as she said that, she turned around with her tail in front of her and kept it between my stomach and her body before hugging me like a koala. While pressing her tail onto my body, her face was resting onto my shoulder.

[It’s warmer than I thought. Plus it’s really fluffy.] (Yuuya)

[Foxes are awesome. Because it’s Yuuya, Luna will share the fluffiness and warmth.] (Luna)

[Thank you for that. By the way, remember to put on your hoodie. It’ll keep your ears warm.] (Yuuya)

[Okay.] (Luna)

Luna was currently wearing Phil’s hand-tailored fox-hoodie. Since Luna’s ears were extremely sensitive, she prepared the hoodie for Luna to prevent sand and dust from affecting her ears. It also served well as a winter clothing.

[Now Luna is perfect.] (Luna)

She looked so strange that I smiled unintentionally.

[Now then, it’s time to pick up the pace otherwise we won’t make it by tomorrow.] (Yuuya)

In response to my thoughts, Raptor began to accelerate while letting out a loud cry.

Eventually, we began to overtake one carriage after another.

As expected, our Raptor carriage was just great.

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We arrived in an open field on one of the mountains and prepared to set up camp.

As I was taking out the tent from my bag, Phil began to prepare dinner by taking out her mobile cooking kit as usual.

[Oneechan, what are we having today?] (Til)

[Since we’ve been having nothing but meat recently, I’m thinking of preparing some seafood instead. Since we still have plenty of shrimp (Average), I’m going to be making shrimp pilaf for dinner.] (Phil)

Shrimp meat dropped in large chunks of meat that was clearly not from a shrimp however it’s taste was equally thick and rich. Just listening to Phil mention shrimp pilaf is making me hungry.

[Luna loves meat but shrimp is great too!] (Luna)

[Me too!] (Til)

[Truthfully, I have never tried eating shrimp meat. This will be my first time.] (Selene)

[Well it is quite unhealthy compared to standard dishes.] (Yuuya)

[That isn’t the case. The main reason is the geography of the land. Shrimp can only be obtained from the sea and because it is an ingredient that spoils quickly, it’s difficult to transport it all the way to the Laluzulu Kingdom. There weren’t any merchants who have a Magic Bag that were doing this either.] (Selene)

[Speaking of which, I’ve never eaten it either until I met Yuuya-niisan. My village was located in the middle of the mountains too.] (Selene)

This was the reason for the spike in the Magic Bag’s price. With the ability to transport fresh seafood deeper inland while retaining its quality, this would allow them to monopolise the distribution of seafood inland. The main problem wasn’t the lack of willing merchants, but the lack of ability to distribute.

[Now then, I can’t let everyone down tonight since it’s Selene’s first time after all.] (Phil)

[Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to it.] (Selene)

It’ll surely be an amazing dish since it’s Phil afterall.

Suddenly, Luna’s fox ears began to twitch.

[Uhn. Luna found something. Two hundred metres ahead, one monster. Feels like a deer. It’s walking slowly without making a sound.] (Luna)

Most monster’s detection abilities ranged were about fifty metres with some exceptions. In the case for Presence Detection, it will start moving once you enter its range. One characteristic that every monster with Presence Detection had, was their high level. This deer monster was likely one of them and a strong monster at that.

[It might be a natural monster, or a dungeon monster that strayed from its dungeon. Does anyone want to do a light exercise before dinner?] (Selene)

[Luna wants to go too!] (Luna)

[Of course, I will go too!] (Til)

I shook my head despite the duo’s enthusiasm.

[No, let me go alone this time.] (Yuuya)

[Yuuya-niisan, why would you be going alone.] (TIl)

[This blade is as sacred as it is cursed. There’s a rumor saying that once this blade is drawn, if it is returned to its scabbard without bathing in the blood of its enemies then the blade will bring about its owner’s downfall. Selene, how was this blade treated by the royal family?] (Yuuya)

[It was an ancient hero’s precious blade. A story was passed down about how the hero drew Dainsleif and defeated thousands of monsters in order to protect the Laluzulu Kingdom. However, nobody knows about it’s true ability. It’s been passed down to the best knights of the kingdom and returned once they retired or slain in combat. At the very least, none of the knights has been able to draw the blade in the past few hundred years. This was why the blade is just a testament to being the best knight of the kingdom. However, I believe that Yuuya-ojisama will be the one to draw the blade. If it is truly a blade capable of defeating over a thousand monsters, then it is a tremendous power boost if you could draw it.] (Selene)

The sacred blade Dainsleif was only a sword in name in the game. It was just displayed in the royal castle as an antique and cannot be obtained. However there were several rumors floating around it. In the library for the game, there were several written scriptures about the blade.

By sacrificing your life, you will obtain an undefeatable power.

Never draw the blade, lest you turn into a beast.

A blade that shines in blood, is nothing but a curse blade.

The blade was never available to the players, however several players managed to datamine the game files and discovered hidden data about the blade. Due to this, the player base was convinced that the blade would one day be available in a future event.

….The reason this sword was being treated as a divine sword was likely due to the flow of time. With the hero’s feat of destroying a horde of monsters, the details were forgotten over time and all that was left was the amazing feat of destroying a horde of monsters as well as the myth that no one would be capable of pulling the sword out of the sheath.

[In any case, It is entirely possible that I will lose my sanity drawing the blade and end up cutting everyone unintentionally. If my abilities were multiplied several-fold and I attacked any of you without hesitation, then are any of you confident of surviving that? You’re free to tag along if you are confident of doing so.] (Yuuya)

[…Impossible. Luna will die if Yuuya seriously attacked.] (Luna)

[It’s even more impossible for me you know!] (Til)

[Then both of you will stay here.] (Yuuya)

[But Luan doesn’t want you to try something so scary in the first place.] (Luna)

Luna pulled onto my sleeves with a worrisome look as I looked at her while stroking her head.

[Don’t worry about that. According to the legends, I’ll be able to sheathe the blade once it is soaked in blood. I’ll only draw the blade if I find the prey. Even though it’s dangerous, I can’t overlook the possibility that I might become stronger with this blade. Luna, I’m sure you understand what I’m trying to say.] (Yuuya)

[Luna understands but don’t overdo it.] (Luna)

[Of course I won’t.] (Yuuya)

This blade might end up being extremely valuable as insurance once I test it out since it could be our saving grace in a worst case scenario. I was confident that the blade would have been implemented in the game, so I am sure that there would be some way of using the blade effectively.