By Zephyria 
Ruben nuzzled his cheek against my collarbone a couple of times. He looked just like a newborn kitten. I didn’t push away his childish demands, simply enduring them in silence. The warmth of Ruben’s breath on my chest was palpable.
After a moment of soft groans, Ruben spoke again.
“I’m not sure if the Ninth God, Wesley Kiadris, and the Thousand-Faced Devil are the same person or accomplices… but it’s certain that there’s a group working to raise the continent’s Mana Concentration.”
“Mana Concentration?”
“Yes. They instigated mana explosions multiple times near Dunmel Canyon and Makabi Cliff, used special Mutated Monsters to spread Contaminated Mana across the continent, and induced the rampage of ancient spirits… it’s all the same pattern.”
Benjamin raised his hand, requesting permission to speak. Ruben nodded, granting it, and Benjamin immediately asked,
“Didn’t the Oasis say something similar before? Was that also…”
“Yes, including gathering many Martial artists, such as the Imperial Knights. I thought any incident would begin with their deaths, but I never imagined they would have laid such a trap across the entire continent…”
Marianne, who had been contemplating the matter, reached out to me. I readily handed over the flute I had been playing with to the child. Marianne held the Divine object in her hands, fiddled with it a few times, then peered into the small, dark opening. She asked,
“Is Sierren unable to act immediately because of the Divine object?”
“That’s possible… The First Goddess is also in the Magic territory right now. The Oasis mentioned that we are under the First Goddess’s protection. So it could be the Goddess’s arrangement… or perhaps, since the First Human’s soul has spread throughout the world, many fragments might have fallen specifically into Sierren.”
All the children were silent, staring at their respective tables or the tent walls, lost in thought.
Just as I was about to comfort Ruben, who seemed to be sliding down, Marianne glanced at me. Hesitantly, I raised my hand, then froze in embarrassment.
Marianne, with a nonchalant expression, held the ends of the flute with both hands, fiddling with it as she continued,
“Perhaps they want to open the Dimensional Gate multiple times?”
“Hmm?”
“Honestly, it’s a rather obvious idea. They failed to bring the Golden Turtle’s soul and place it into the First Human’s empty body, right? When you lack ingredients for Alchemy, what do you do? You pester the Professor for new materials, or buy them at the market, don’t you?”
“…”
“You said someone who can create Blood Corpse Fiends in the same world as Michael crossed over. The Blood Corpse Fiends retained some of their memories from life, and the God of Oasis judged the Corpse Fiends as monsters with souls remaining…”
“…”
“You need to create the First Human’s body first before you can put a soul into it. But with the current ingredients, they’ve only failed for a thousand years. First, create the body, then force the First Human’s soul into that vessel. If that is the Ninth God’s goal and objective…”
Ruben’s gaze flickered towards my hands.
As the child stared intently at my fingertips, I couldn’t retreat further and pulled Ruben’s shoulder towards me, covering it with my hand. With a patting motion, Ruben gently pulled me closer. His body, melting into me like a chick in its mother’s embrace, leaned against me obediently.
Marianne placed the flute she was holding on the table with a sharp clack and continued,
“…They might want to go next door and steal materials to make a shell. Excuse me. Are you listening to me right now?”
“Yes. So… in any case, we can’t let them do what they’re trying to do, right?”
“That… is correct. Yes, well…”
Ruben replied calmly, his voice softer than before.
“The frozen Lake of Memories is likely their doing as well… I wonder what they’ve sealed away.”
“They’d be tempted to open it, wouldn’t they? If they open it incorrectly, Contaminated Mana will explode, or perhaps they’ve secretly hidden Vivian’s Divine Object inside.”
“If something strange pops out, how about the Prince using that flute to seal it shut?”
“As long as it doesn’t incur Divine Punishment for disturbing the will of the gods…”
It wasn’t unusual for Ivan to make strange jokes. I dismissed it as a jest, but Ruben seemed surprisingly receptive.
It was a Divine object that had suppressed the Golden Turtle with the Goddess’s power. Divine Power possessed the opposite nature of Contaminated Mana. It would only be a problem for those who carried Contaminated Mana in their bodies, like Yulan’s youngest Prince, or those suffering.
Then, Marianne clasped her hands together and mimicked a Cleric praying.
“How about we all pray to the Sun God starting today? ‘You gave us this Divine object to use, so we’ll use it!’ ”
“Is anyone in charge of the First Goddess? I don’t have much faith.”
“I found the Oasis a bit more to my taste. Shall we pray to the Third God?”
“…”
Marianne and Ivan exchanged jokes before bursting into laughter.
The God of Oasis… was indeed beautiful and radiant. I remembered his slender build and fair, clear cheeks. Without realizing it, I glanced at Benjamin. He was, as always, staring into the distance with a stoic expression.
Come to think of it, Marianne had been smiling brightly the entire time and hadn’t mentioned Glotin Tenner at all. I didn’t know if she was waiting for a moment alone with me or if she had managed to control her feelings.
After enjoying tea together, and having spent over thirty minutes exchanging pointless jokes, I finally told everyone to go to bed and sent them all out.
Ruben, who had stayed close to me until all the children had left, finally stretched out with a long yawn. Was his posture a little uncomfortable? I thought to myself that I needed to grow larger so the child could lean on me without hunching over.
❖ ❖ ❖
Bivan Capital, Viper, was three days’ journey from the Lake of Memories.
Ivan Bikoff and his wife took charge of organizing the procession. Ivan, leading the way with two knights, managed to procure three surprisingly good-quality carriages for us.
Ruben and I took the largest and finest carriage. The second carriage carried the two mages and Ivan and his wife. The third carriage held six laborers. Benjamin and four knights guarded the front and rear of the carriages.
Each carriage was pulled by four horses, with two drivers. The remaining laborers rode horses, following behind the carriages. With such an impeccable appearance, both my heart and body felt at ease.
According to etiquette, no one else should enter the carriage occupied by a Prince, and a retainer with a title of Count or higher should attend to personal matters.
However, our group was no longer concerned with such trivialities. Ivan and Marianne occasionally entered the carriage where Ruben and I were seated without ceremony.
Ivan primarily came in to report on the procession’s structure and convenience.
“We have passed Bivan’s first checkpoint.”
“What did they say?”
“Upon learning that the Second Prince was among our party, they requested the hoisting of a banner. We agreed and displayed the Prince’s Banner outside the carriage. Do you intend to head straight for the Royal Castle like this?”
“Hmm… that would be best. What is the purpose of our entry?”
“We’ve stated that our party was scattered due to a Mutated Monster during a pilgrimage, and we were forced to enter Bivan. It would look better if the Prince himself requested entry permission for the Sierren knights.”
Ruben expressed his admiration for Ivan’s diligent reply. Ivan, feigning surprise even though he wasn’t, smiled faintly at the compliment. He then continued,
“However, the distance to Viper is considerable, and this area is mostly agricultural villages, making it difficult to find decent lodging. I was thinking of asking the village chief to vacate his house in the village we’ll reach around sunset today. Would that be acceptable?”
“Of course. Thank you for taking care of it.”
“It’s nothing.”
Marianne, after chatting with Mage Boulder, would frequently knock on our carriage door to share any thoughts that came to mind or anything she felt we needed to know in advance.
“The Mana Concentration outside is insane right now. Even though we’re several kilometers away from the lake, the fog hasn’t cleared.”
“Was it alright on the way here?”
“We didn’t pass through Viper. Naturally, stopping by the capital would only raise suspicion. We took a detour around the outskirts of Bivan, through sparsely populated areas. We even used magic to conceal our presence and cross the border. So we thought it was only near the lake.”
“…Hmm.”
“If the fog is like this day and night, farming and everything else would be impossible… Prince, did you really not know?”
Marianne’s gaze snapped back. Ruben, who had been sitting beside me, quietly contemplating, shook his head.
“Not at all. So… I haven’t heard any news about the Kingdom of Bivan suffering from famine recently, or about the Empire or neighboring kingdoms making efforts to secure more food. Fog this dense should have affected even a bountiful harvest. How is that possible?”
“Exactly! Bivan is a country with nothing to see besides crops, to begin with. How can a country that is self-sufficient in most goods, except for salt and luxury items, possibly…?”
I opened the carriage window and glanced outside.
Even with my keen eyesight, I could only discern objects within about 30 meters. The fog was so thick.
The fog density near the Lake of Memories and here, far beyond it, was similar. It was the same at Makabi Cliff, which was much further away. I felt utterly lost at the thought of fighting an unknown enemy, wondering how large the thing sealed away could be.
Marianne continued talking for a while longer before flouncing out, saying she would go ask Boulder.
The remaining time was spent with just Ruben and me.
Ruben sat close beside me, counting and stroking each of my fingers. When I playfully offered my fingertips, he didn’t refuse and nibbled them a couple of times. His smile was so lovely that I kept reaching out to touch his cheeks.
“…Before.”
“Yes.”
“When I rode in a carriage with Mika…”
“…Hmm?”
“I wanted to sit like this, side-by-side.”
…When?
How many times had my past self held me back? I tensed. I had ridden in carriages with Ruben so often that I couldn’t recall which time he was referring to. Usually, Ruben and I sat facing each other… looking into each other’s eyes, or occasionally chatting about various things.
As I remained silent, unable to answer, the child pulled my palm to his lips and kissed it, smiling.
“I’m not blaming you. I’m just… curious.”
Ruben bit my fingertip. After a moment’s hesitation, I imitated him and kissed the tip of his finger. The child looked at me with a flushed face for a long time before hugging me tightly, and I embraced him back. It was warm like that until Marianne knocked on the carriage door again.