Kays Translations

Chapter 31: Aiming for the Silver Mountains

“But boy. That doesn't mean you should go."

“Yeah, you're right.”

Lessard didn’t let up.

He had been helped by Ren many times, and the thought of being taken care of again this time was awkward.

But Ren had his own reasons why he thought he should go. It was the existence of natural magic with the wooden magic sword.

(My natural magic would work in the Baldor Mountains even in the winter.)

Of course, he could also make use of his sword skills and other powers.

Ren knew Weiss would be the best person to go with, but he should stay here in the mansion with Lessard and Licia. Remembering the attack by Jerukku, he could think of no other choice.

However, Ren hadn’t told anyone the information concerning the summoning of the magic sword.

Licia has witnessed it because of the circumstances, but she also didn’t ask for details because Ren wouldn’t talk about it, and furthermore, she didn’t tell her father either.

Why did Ren keep his power hidden from the public? When he was a child, he somehow avoided talking about it indiscreetly, and only kept his mouth shut when he thought back to the scenario in the game.

But recently, he wasn’t so willing to reveal it publicly, even for self-preservation.

Because of my special powers, there was a large part of me that hid them in order to always take advantage of them.

“I’m the son of Roy Ashton. Even if I’m not the heir of the family, as the son of a knight, I cannot remain idle."

In order to get Lessard to acknowledge him, Ren voiced his emotions, knowing that this wasn’t enough.

The strength in Ren's eyes reminds him of the uproar in the spring.

When Licia was stuck in Viscount Given's speech, he looked very much like he did that time when he opened his mouth to help her.

Then Lessard's eyes went down.

He let something sink in for a dozen seconds, then let out a short breath.

“Weiss, When Ren was still in the village, you heard from Roy that Ren had skills.”

"Yes, I did. There’s no doubt.”

"If that’s the case… Ren now thinks that his skills will be useful in this case as well. He was more emotional than ever because he couldn't bring himself to say it.”

Ren was surprised that he’d been detected, but he did his best to hide his emotions.

Lessard noticed that Ren was trying to appear calm, but he didn't point this out.

Instead, he respected Ren's feelings.

“Ren you’re really smart. Talking about strength is as good as talking about weakness. Unless you’re a saint like Licia, otherwise there isn’t much advantage in letting others know about your skills."

“......Lessard-sama.”

“I don't mind. Keep your skills to yourself.”

But Lessard became convinced.

The skills that Ren hides will definitely come into play in this case.

He knew that Ren's confident voice told him that he was going, and that it was for Clausel's sake.

"---- Weiss, give Ren some of the magical tools from the warehouse. Any of them will do. As long as they don't get in the way, you can let him have everything he needs."

“Ha!”

Weiss answered enthusiastically and ran out of the office.

Ren, who was left behind, looked at Lessard and said, "Are you sure?”

“Of course, you will receive a reward when you return. I won't allow you to refuse."

“I understand. I will return as soon as possible for that reason.”

Do that.

He also told Ren not to push himself too hard.

Meanwhile, Ren left Lessard’s office and proceeded to return to the old building. He was preparing for an excursion.

Then---

“---- Ren!"

Licia called out to him.

It was just as he was approaching the path from the entrance of the main residence to the old building.

“You're awake.”

“Of course I am. I’m a member of the Clausel family, so I have things to do, just like my father.”

“If you say so…”

“So, what are you trying to do?”

The truth is, Ren was planning to leave the house without telling Licia.

But Licia knew what Ren was thinking.

"You're not going to do something without telling me, aren’t you?"

“---It’s not like that!”

“Pheww...... yeah right.”

Ren knew that he’d been exposed.

But Licia sighed deeply and profoundly when she saw his defiant appearance.

“Why are you deceiving me?”

“I'm not deceiving you.....”

"No. You know that I’ve found out what you’re hiding from me, but you’re still trying to cover it up.”

Apparently, she knows.

There was no reason for Ren to hide it anymore.

“I was going to leave without telling you because you would have worried about me.”

“Hah..... if you're going to say something that stupid, remember this is the time to do it.”

Licia closed the distance further and took Ren's hand in hers.

The white light from her hand envelopes Ren's body.

“I’d be much more worried if you would just go away without telling me.”

Ren's body was filled with vitality and his entire body was filled with strength.

“Is that sacred magic?”

“Yes, it is.  It's sacred magic to lighten your body a little so that you don't get hurt.”

So this is not a buff sacred magic.

It's just a little help to relieve the fatigue in Ren's body and make it easier for him to move around. It was such a small help that he’d lose it within a few hours of leaving Clausel, let alone before reaching the Baldor Mountains.

“I told Weiss that I’d go with you, but he immediately said no."

Ren nodded, as if it were reasonable, when he realized why Licia knew what was going on.

In addition, he chuckled at her unreasonable offer, saying, "It’s natural”.

“I have no choice, I'll wait here for you."

“If you put it that way, I feel like I can do my best.”

“Then promise me one thing.”

Licia put strength into Ren's hand, which had remained clenched.

As she squeezes, It’s as if I can sense her feelings as well.

The eyes of the woman looking up at Ren were filled with a beautiful power and desperation that took his breath away.

「---- absolutely, positively, come back safely.」

Surely Licia is still not convinced that she cannot accompany him.

He understood why, but his feelings aren’t okay with it.

Ren could painfully understand that both the sacred magic and the current promise were meant to comfort his grieving feelings.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

The wintertime march of the knights of the Clausel family and their band of adventurers was a dependable one, free of any sense of worry about the monsters.

But the journey to the Baldor Mountains took several more days than usual because of the snow.

(...... Really, we're here.)

The silvery-white peaks rising up in front of us.

When I saw it before, it was only covered with snow, but now it was completely covered in silver.

The sharp surface of the mountain, reminiscent of a polished sword, has not changed, only the fierceness of nature has increased.

It was a completely different sight from the one I had seen during my escape with Licia, and boasted a grandeur that belied its status as the last stage of the game era.

“It's still a tremendous amount of snow.”

A knight of the Clausel family said.

The villages we had stopped at along the way had also suffered from snow, but the Baldor Mountains boast an even more exceptional amount of snowfall.

“It's snowy. It makes it hard to know how to proceed.”

The group stopped in front of the road normally used by adventurers entering the Baldor Mountains.

(We came here in the summer when the game was played, so this didn't happen to us.)

I wonder what's going on.

The snowfall is more than expected and I can't find anything that can be called a road.

All that's around is snow that's piled up more than a large adult.

Then Maidas, the werewolf who was accompanying us, said.

“It's not impossible to melt the snow with magical tools or to make it retreat with the wind, but ......”

“Won't that cause an avalanche?"

“Yes. As Hero-dono says, such a thing would cause an avalanche. ......After all, we have no choice but to go on, avoiding the snow. Unless, of course, you have wings like the winged harpy.”

There’s no use in asking for something you don't have.

“Adventurers, I suggest that we set up our base first.”

“I agree. Let's set up our base first, and then we'll adjust our plans for the future.”

“Then let's set out tomorrow. It’s already past noon today, and it will be dark when we finish setting up the base.”

Some of the knights and adventurers were disappointed with this decision.

In fact, the group had seen smoke signal rising from the fort halfway up the Baldor Mountains yesterday, and had confirmed that the group was still alive.

That is why they wanted to go to the rescue as soon as possible.

I understand the decision because we shouldn’t get ourselves lost, but my heart isn’t at ease.

(But)

After all this time, there’s something that has been bothering me.

There must be more than one adventurer protecting the client merchant. This is certain because Ren asked Kai himself when he received the request for the appointment.

But would they be stuck in the snow, no matter how bad the snowfall was?

Unlike in his previous life, adventurers in this world have very high physical capabilities.

If the monsters weren’t strong, I wondered if professional adventurers would be pushed to that level.

“Excuse me."

Ren asked the knight about the question.

“I understand that it's a lot of snow, but is this enough to put an adventurer out of action?”

“I think it would be difficult...... If you have magical equipment in addition to equipment made from monster materials, it may be possible to descend the mountain, but this time they have an escort target."

“However," the knight continued.

“Of course, I'm not saying it's impossible even with an escort target. If they were going to pass through the Baldor Mountains in winter, they must have chosen adventurers with a good deal of experience.”

“Does that mean it would be possible to descend the mountain?”

“Yes. They may have decided to take it easy and wait for rescue.... or there’s a possibility that some people will be injured and stuck.”

Certainly, if that were to happen, they could have called for rescue.

The knight finally said, "In any case, we must hurry to rescue them."

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