Chapter 4: The matter of that key.

A young female civil officer who led the group gathered here opened her mouth.

She smiled at Licia and Fiona, then looked at Ren and bowed her head.

“During the earlier disturbance, I hear you saved many civilians with your power. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you both ever since I heard you were coming.”

The surrounding civil officials also murmured that the two girls’ exploits were a hot topic even within the castle.

During Orphide’s raid, the Leomel encirclement deployed around the imperial capital had been crucial—but so had the girls’ actions when they stepped off the magi-train that day and fought. That went without saying.

“Yes, thank you.”

“Back then we were just… doing everything we could.”

The adults smiled gently at the girls acting their age. Everyone began to move, and before he noticed, Ren—walking alongside them—was drawing more attention than either girl.

…They say he fought in Windea?

…He carries the Holy Grimdoll Sword Emblem. It’s no wonder he can stand beside the children of the English aristocracy.

There were a few whispers about Ren, but none carried judgment—only genuine curiosity.

Ren himself didn’t hear those voices. He was too focused on their surroundings.

(Doesn’t look like anything strange here…)

The three had come to inspect the damage from the raid.

Some sections of the railway still hadn’t been repaired, and parts of the terrain had been gouged out by explosions. All of it was aftermath from the Demon King Church’s attacks around the capital during the Orphide incident.

Even the magi-train they had ridden had stopped because of that damage.

And a few days earlier—

“Huh? Lord Ulysses too?”

“Of course. The Ignat family is connected to the Guardian Knight as well, right?”

“Now that you mention it… that makes sense. And there’s the new track as well.”

“Exactly. So that day, I’ll probably have Fiona take my place.”

Ulysses Ignat. Head of the Imperial Faction and Fiona’s father.

After that conversation, Fiona had come here together with Licia, not only as the daughter of the lord of Elendil, but also representing her house.

“Maybe the damage wasn’t as bad as Father expected.”

“Yes, at this rate repairs won’t take long.”

Licia and Fiona took out their notebooks and scribbled a few notes as they observed the area.

While the White Saint and the Black Priestess diligently performed their duties, Ren also watched the surroundings, hoping he could at least assist them since he had no official role.

“We’ll continue the tour from here. Thank you again for coming all this way today.”

“Not at all. The Guardian Knight is deeply connected to our house.”

“Same here. We may be far from Elendil, but this land and the highway around it still fall under our domain.”

As Ren listened to the woman and the two girls talk, something resurfaced faintly in his mind.

(In Seven Heroes Legend, didn’t this area have some kind of limited access?)

His uncertainty, as usual, came from how much time had passed.

But as he thought about it, he remembered: yes, the player could technically come here, but there were no quests, no exploration—not a single interesting feature.

“—Ren?”

When he came back to himself, Fiona was leaning forward, peering into his face with concern.

“Ah—sorry, I spaced out. Is something wrong?”

“There’s a canyon a little ways ahead. We should check the damage there as well… Will you be alright?”

“Got it. Let’s go.”

Recalling the terrain a short walk ahead, Ren responded and led the group across the plains with the officials behind them.

They entered a forest immediately beyond the plains to reach the canyon.

Everyone walked along the yet-unrepaired railway leading toward it. Walking boldly along a place one never usually walks felt strange—and that feeling only grew as they neared the canyon.

The scenery changed in an instant. The three spotted a metal bridge and railway built over the canyon.

The bridge was wide and surrounded by makeshift scaffolding. Restoration was rapidly progressing.

After finishing most of what they needed to check, Ren’s eyes drifted downward.

Mist drifted slowly over the vast view. A calm river below. The sound of water, and trees rustling.

Listening to those sounds made the battles of the past days feel like lies.

The mist made the water look a dull blue, creating a rare sight. The three stepped forward on the rounded gravel, each thinking the same thing.

“They say the enemy had been hiding in that cave.”

Licia looked at a small cave along the cliff.

It was said to be less than forty meils deep, and knights were searching around for any remaining traces.

Ren asked one of the knights stationed there, “Is it safe for people to enter now?”

“Yes, sir. Both the interior and the deeper section are secure. Would you like to see for yourself?”

“Yes. Then—Lishia, Lady Fiona.”

The two nodded and followed Ren into the cave.

It wasn’t large, just as described. The back should have been a dead-end, but signs of destruction from the Demon King Church could be seen where they had broken through.

Soon, light streamed in from further inside—beyond the back.

Ren, leading the two, saw an open space beyond the stone wall: an overhead circular opening, branches and green leaves reaching inward.

And in that small, natural courtyard—an old stone building stood alone.

After stepping out of the cave, Licia took in the sight.

“They must’ve forced their way through the cave to reach this place.”

She continued:

“Hundreds of years ago, this used to be a rest stop for travelers on the old road. But as the road fell into disuse, nature swallowed it up.”

“The map still shows a path to the new road.”

“You can reach it… but it’d be a bit of an adventure.”

Fiona’s light laugh matched the overgrown scenery.

Untouched nature wrapped around the weathered stone building.

This place had been known long before the cave was opened through, but few ever came here.

Ren tried to search his memories of Seven Heroes Legend.

(I think this was outside the playable area…)

Players couldn’t reach this spot. Only because the cave was broken open could they stand here now.

The untouched beauty of nature left a deep impression on the three.

A refreshing breeze washed over them. Breathing it in felt like finally letting their hearts rest after the inspection.

They were just about to begin inspecting this area as well—

When suddenly—

Ren felt Fiona and Licia’s voices grow distant.

Just as he feared—

“…!”

The same intense, abrupt headache as before stabbed through him.

He tried to raise his hand to his forehead, but the pain struck before he could touch it.

When he shut his eyes for a moment from the pain, what he saw next was—

The spot where Lishia and Fiona had been standing.

“…Both of you!?”

They were nowhere to be seen.

Instead, he heard a familiar voice.

“Kept you waiting, Ren.”

“Ragna!? Why are you here!?”

Even though their eyes met, Ragna’s gaze seemed strangely unfocused. Ren realized the reason—this Ragna wasn’t looking at him.

“…Huh?”

Walking past Ren, Ragna addressed someone standing further in, leaning against a weather-worn stone wall.

“Not at all. I haven’t waited long.”

Ren Ashton.

The boy who killed the White Saint, then Chronoa Hyland afterward.

Ren—summoned here as nothing more than a spectator—realized again that he could only stand and watch.

An elderly gentleman stepped out of the forest. Edgar, Ulysses Ignat’s former head steward.

“Lord Ren, I’m relieved to see you unharmed.”

“Same here.”

Ragna smirked. Edgar looked up at the tall wanderer wrapped in a travel robe.

“Even for Ignat’s steward, this must be your longest journey in hiding.”

“Master Ragna, I am merely a former steward. Besides, until meeting Lord Ren, I also—”

“Spare me. After such loyal service, calling yourself ‘former’ is ridiculous.”

“B—but I…”

Ignoring Edgar’s fluster, Ragna spoke while approaching Ren.

“You said you’d serve the same master even after death. If you insist on calling yourself ‘former,’ do it after you’ve retired in the afterlife.”

“…Honestly. You are kind in everything but your words.”

“I’m just honest. I complain to gods when I need to, and old holy texts make great campfire fuel. They burn beautifully.”

“…See? This is why arguing with him is pointless. I gave up long ago.”

“I’m glad. Sounds like the two of us were pretty close.”

“—See? This is what he’s like.”

Ren Ashton shrugged with a bitter smile. Edgar returned it with genuine amusement.

Edgar’s eyes stayed on Ren Ashton.

“You truly resemble her.”

“Huh? Resemble who?”

“Lady Fiona. She often smiled just like that when troubled.”

“Fiona… You mean the daughter of Marquis Ignat?”

“Indeed. A beautiful, pure lady. I wish you could have met her.”

“Not sure. The Marquis didn’t seem like the type to let her meet random guys.”

They made small talk as they walked.

As sunlight fell gently on the courtyard, the three headed deeper within, stepping over cracked stone floors through the half-collapsed building.

Ren Ashton—the great sinner whose name scarred Leomel’s history—spoke:

“Either way, you’re overestimating a regular knight’s kid.”

He laughed lightly, boyishly.

But Edgar immediately objected.

“Regular? Now that’s simply untrue.”

“—Edgar.”

Ren spoke sharply, and Edgar fell silent with a simple, “My apologies.”

As if their previous conversation had vanished, Ren said:

“We leave today. We have to pursue Vayne and the others.”

His voice and back were nothing like the boy from moments earlier—commanding, noble, unwavering.

Even the adults felt a chill of awe.

“Should I come with you?”
“Just partway, Ragna. After that, same as always.”
“Fine. I’ll bury myself in research as usual. You handle the rest.”
“Then I shall be your escort, Lord Ren.”

But Ren Ashton shook his head.

“Partway is enough for you too, Edgar. I need you watching the Demon King Church instead.”
“Oh? Then you’ll fight alone? Without her accompanying you?”
“She’ll come, but it’s fine. Even if Vayne’s group tries to attack me, I can handle it alone. She has her own task.”
“Are you certain? The Seven Heroes’ descendants are strong enough to kill a high priest.”
“Even so—it’s fine.”

The boy who even seven descendants of heroes couldn’t defeat.
The one called the story’s true mastermind—Ren Ashton.

Neither Edgar nor Ragna doubted his words.

“If it’s me, I can handle it alone.”

What kind of experience and resolve did one need to speak such words?

The overpowering aura beneath his calm voice left Edgar no room for protest.

“Please take care. The ones the Seven Heroes’ descendants may face are bishops—far beyond priests.”
“Which is exactly why Ren plans to step in if necessary.”

The sky-continent wanderer flashed a grin; the old steward sighed softly.

And with that, the world’s illusionary tale came to an end.

――――And then, before he knew it, the scenery had returned to normal.

Ren realized then just how accustomed he had become to things snapping back so abruptly, to the point it almost made him wonder if everything he had just seen had been a lie.

Meanwhile, to Licia and Fiona, who had been walking just ahead of him, it only looked like Ren had suddenly gone quiet.

They both glanced up at him.

“Ren?”

“Ren-kun?”

Their voices overlapped, filled with concern.

They remembered well the time, on the way back from the Orphide incident, when Ren had been struck by sudden headaches on the journey from the imperial capital back to Elendil.

That had happened when he saw Eve.
And that had been before fighting Orphide at all…

“C-Could it be some leftover part of the curse—!?”

“T-that’s right! Are you okay!?”

“No, it’s nothing like that! And Licia—! You don’t need to start casting holy magic out of nowhere—!!”

Stopping the two girls, who had reached out in panic, Ren insisted firmly that he was truly fine, wearing an awkward smile.

They, too, realized it didn’t seem to be related to the curse and exhaled in relief.

As they resumed walking, Ren dug through his memories.

(In the final battle of II… was the behind-the-scenes reason why Ren Ashton showed up really something like that?)

Well, that aside…

He felt like he had just remembered how overwhelmingly strong the Legend of the Seven Heroes’ Ren Ashton had been, and he let out yet another wry smile—one of many today.

(“She”… who was he talking about…?)

He still had no answer when a voice reached them from behind—near the cave entrance.

Mixed among the knights’ and civil officials’ voices was someone Ren knew well.

Just as he suspected, the person soon appeared.
The same figure who had also shown up in the vision just moments earlier—the traveler with the oversized bag…

“So it was you three. What are you doing here?”

It was Ragna, a researcher belonging to the Mystics Bureau.

The impossibly large bag that symbolized him once again looked comically huge compared to his small frame. His appearance was almost exactly the same as the one Ren had just seen in the vision, which made Ren falter for a moment.

But he quickly refocused and answered as Ragna approached from the cave.

“I’m just accompanying these two while they work. More importantly—why are you here, Ragna-san?”

“Half for work, half for my hobby. Radius gave me permission to operate around here, but the civil officials and knights insisted on coming along because they worry about me.”

Behind him, a female knight who had accompanied him looked apologetic.

“With the situation being what it is, we just wanted to be extra cautious…”

“Well, I understand what you’re saying. …So? Will you forgive my earlier comment?
It’s not like I dislike you people.”

“N-not at all!”

Hearing the civil official’s reply, Ragna gave Ren a subtle glance—

—as if he were trying to signal something.
Licia and Fiona seemed to notice as well; the three quietly matched each other’s timing.

“Ragna-san, we’d like your opinion on the situation here, if you don’t mind?”

“Ah, seeking the wisdom of the Bag Traveler, are we? Since it’s you asking, Ren, I suppose I can’t refuse.”

“We’ll be nearby, so please call for us if anything comes up,” the civil official added before stepping back.

Once she was gone, Ragna looked around at the surrounding nature, his expression brightening.

“So this really connected to this path…”

“You knew about this place?”

“Whenever I hear about old roads or forgotten rest stops, I always want to see them myself.
I just never had the chance to come here until now.”

After that, Ren introduced Licia and Fiona to Ragna properly.

Licia in particular owed him for his help during what they temporarily called her “angelification” phenomenon, so she offered her thanks politely.

Ragna brushed it off with his usual “don’t worry about it.”

“So, Ragna-san, what brought you here specifically?”

“Ah. Let me explain properly.”

Ragna removed his hood and began walking, and the three followed.

While walking, he spoke softly enough that no one but them could hear:

“――――It’s about the key.”

That key.

The crucial item needed to reach the hidden refuge of the legendary bard Myudy—
the one Ren had been eagerly waiting for.