Chapter 241 - Chapter 240: Mika's Disappearance
Viscountcy of Braikosloa, in the mountains.
Mika looked up at the sky and stood motionless.
It had been a while since Mika stopped laughing.
Even so, Mika did not move, merely gazing up at the sky.
Just around Mika, dozens of corpses were scattered.
In the entire open area, hundreds of corpses lay strewn about.
All of them had had their lives taken by Mika's hand.
A vast number of corpses and blood, enough to make one think that everything in their field of vision was dyed red.
Kistil stared blankly at Mika, standing alone amidst it all.
Ch-ch-ch-ch...
Pi-pi...
The chirping of small birds could be heard.
In truth, it had been reaching her ears this whole time, but her consciousness had not turned toward it.
The pungent, choking smell of blood made Kistil feel nauseous.
An unpleasant clicking sound also reached her ears.
Time within Kistil began to flow slowly.
"............Mika, kun......."
Kistil slowly wiped her tears and turned her gaze to Nerisfeene beside her.
Nerisfeene was crouching, hugging her own body, trembling violently.
Only then did she realize it.
Kistil herself was also trembling.
Her teeth were not meeting, and her molars were clicking together.
"Nerisfeene......."
Kistil reached out, her hand touching Nerisfeene's shoulder.
"Hii!?"
Nerisfeene jolted, her body shaking violently, and she opened her eyes wide to look at Kistil.
She stared at Kistil for a while, and only then did the tension in her expression ease somewhat.
"......Kis, til......?"
At Nerisfeene's whisper, Kistil nodded.
Then she slowly turned her gaze toward Mika.
Following Kistil's lead, Nerisfeene also turned her gaze toward Mika.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
But the moment she saw Mika, Nerisfeene let out a scream.
"Nerisfeene......."
"......Ah... ah... ah...!"
Nerisfeene, looking at Mika, was terrified and trembled uncontrollably.
It was no wonder.
Mika right now was dyed bright red with splattered blood, in a terrible state.
"Nerisfeene......."
Kistil leaned close to Nerisfeene and embraced her.
Nerisfeene clung to Kistil and sobbed.
After waiting for Nerisfeene to calm down a little, Kistil stood up.
Her knees trembled, and if she let her guard down, she would surely squat down immediately.
And once she knelt, she would never be able to stand again.
It would become something irreversible.
With such a premonition, Kistil exerted all her strength and took a step forward.
"Kistil... no...!"
Nerisfeene called out, trying to stop Kistil as she walked toward Mika.
"...No... right now, Mika-sama is...!"
Nerisfeene tried to stop Kistil with a desperate expression, and Kistil offered a stiff smile.
"Wait. ...Shall we go back? Together, all of us...."
That's right.
We have to go back.
Forget this terrible nightmare, and the three of us together again.
Let's live happily.
Somewhere deep in her heart, a voice screamed that such a thing was no longer possible.
But Kistil blocked her ears with all her might and escaped reality.
Something this terrible could not be real.
Surely, this is just a bad dream.
With every step Kistil took, a disgusting squelching sound echoed.
Kistil deliberately refused to look down at her feet.
With strong will, she refused to face reality!
She would never even imagine herself walking through a pool of blood!
Kistil simply looked straight at Mika only, taking one step, then another.
It was still more than ten meters to Mika.
"Mika, kun......."
Kistil struggled to move her mouth, which was shaking involuntarily, and called out.
"Mika, kun, shall we go back...?"
Kistil's face twisted painfully.
Tears spilled out on their own, flowing down her cheeks.
Squelch...
Mika suddenly turned around and pointed his left hand toward Kistil.
Kistil could not see Mika's expression.
No, it should have entered her eyes.
But Kistil could not recognize Mika's expression.
It was the eyes.
Only those eyes, which had gone beyond all reason, were what Kistil could recognize.
In a word, madness.
Kistil instinctively, without thinking, covered her face with both hands.
Whoosh!
"It hurts!"
A sharp pain ran through her arm, which she had raised to protect her head.
She timidly looked at her arm, and her sleeve was torn as if cut by a blade, with a little blood coming from just above her wrist.
"......Ah... ah... ah...."
A groaning voice could be heard, and Kistil turned her gaze.
There, Mika was there with a face that looked shocked.
How should one describe Mika's expression?
It seemed as if he feared something, yet as if he was frightened by something.
He twisted his face as if about to cry, his lips trembled, and he slightly shook his head in distaste.
(Ah... it's Mika, kun...)
Seeing Mika like that, Kistil felt a sense of relief somewhere.
Only then did she notice that Fee was by Mika's side for the first time.
Fee was shining light toward Mika.
Surely, she was erasing the usual "something" after work.
(Yes... Fee-chan is here, Mika, kun is here, and Nerisfeene is here.)
Nothing has changed.
Just like always, let's go home together.
"......Mika, kun, shall we go back?"
Kistil reached out her hand toward Mika and approached slowly.
Mika stared fixedly at the hand he had hurt, then closed his eyes tightly.
Tears spilled from those eyes.
Mika turned his back and flew away as if fleeing.
"Mika, kun!"
Kistil put strength into her trembling throat and desperately called out to Mika.
But perhaps that voice did not reach Mika, or he had already flown away somewhere.
"............Mika, kun."
Kistil gazed at the sky where Mika had disappeared and whispered.
Fee floated over...
Its light was weak, looking dejected.
"Fee-chan......."
When she reached out her hand, Fee settled into her palm.
Seeing Fee like that made her want to cry even more, but she struggled to hold back her tears.
In truth, she could not hold them back at all, and they spilled over anyway...
She didn't know what was what.
First, a creepy man appeared at the house, then she was shoved into a dark place for a long time, and when she went outside, Mika, kun was there.
The creepy man was incredibly strong, and her neck that he grabbed felt like it was creaking.
And then, forced into a fight to the death by Mika, kun... no, a one-sided slaughter k————.
Thinking that far, Kistil stopped thinking.
She didn't want to remember, and right now, she didn't have the time to do such a thing.
Kistil went to Nerisfeene and made her stand up.
Nerisfeene was greatly shaken, but Kistil was the same.
However, she knew what she had to do.
(I have to find Mika, kun.)
Never again would she lose her precious family.
She would not let them be lost.
She would not let them be taken.
Kistil made that resolve strongly.
It might be a slightly twisted affection.
Ignoring inconvenient things and trying to see only the shape of happiness.
However, for Kistil, who had once lost precious happiness, this was a necessary defense function.
To keep her heart from breaking.
And at this moment, it was the only correct answer.
Should one call it a blessing in disguise?
Without this method, she would undoubtedly have lost everything.
Because anyone who still had the power to think properly would have thrown everything away.
It is impossible to return completely to how it was.
To pretend it never happened is fundamentally impossible.
Even so, if Kistil wishes to be with Mika, then this choice at this moment can be said to have pulled the future toward them.
And that choice became one that saved Mika, this country, and by extension, this entire continent.
Though no one knows that fact...
■■■■■■
"Is this okay, Fee-chan?"
When Kistil asked, Fee intensified its light.
Kistil encouraged Nerisfeene as they descended the mountain path.
She wanted to get away from that place as quickly as possible, one step further away.
However, she did not know where they were.
So, they decided to move to whatever village or town seemed closest.
Fee looked down from the sky and guided them to that place.
As they descended the mountain path, a town came into view.
It was still a bit of a distance, but finally, they could see a place with people, and Kistil sighed with relief.
"Nerisfeene. A town is in sight. It's almost there."
She tried to speak in a bright voice and called out, but Nerisfeene looked down and remained silent.
Nerisfeene was terribly shaken when they started going down the mountain, but as soon as she noticed the injury on her arm, she used [Heal].
But from the middle of the way, she started thinking about something and stopped speaking entirely.
Kistil watched Nerisfeene's state and let out a quiet sigh.
She wanted to be depressed just as much, but right now, she simply had to move.
If she was going to give up on living anyway, she could just lie down here.
Until she died.
Kistil concentrated her consciousness and created a small lump of water.
She put it in her mouth and swallowed it down.
Mika had once passionately argued how advantageous being able to create water was for survival.
Since Kistil had also gone to the forest to gather herbs, she had thought, "Maybe it is convenient?"
But she never thought the time would come to realize this.
Right now, Kistil and the others had absolutely no luggage.
They had been suddenly abducted, so they were not carrying the Magic Bag, a magic tool they had prepared for various things.
They probably hadn't eaten anything for about a full day, so they had no strength.
However, even if there was food right in front of them, they probably wouldn't have the will to eat it.
So, being able to drink water was a great help.
"Nerisfeene, drink some water too."
Kistil created a lump of water for Nerisfeene and lightly touched it to her lips.
Perhaps it was human instinct, but when she touched it to her lips like that, Nerisfeene opened her mouth slightly.
When she put the lump of water into that mouth, Nerisfeene obediently drank it.
(...With my amount of mana, how much longer can I last...?)
Kistil's amount of mana was overwhelmingly small.
Even though it had increased quite a bit, it was incomparable to Nerisfeene, who could manifest [God's Miracle].
Still, she had become able to do things like fill a bath with hot water, so she wouldn't run out of drinking water.
However, since she didn't know how long this situation would last, she needed to conserve it.
Even after arriving at the town, she didn't know what to do.
After all, they didn't even have a single copper coin.
The town was not very large.
There were restaurants and taverns, but they meant nothing to Kistil and the others who had no money.
Kistil walked, holding Nerisfeene's hand, straight down the street extending from the town entrance.
(I have to chase after Mika, kun... But, what should I do?)
She didn't know where he went, and more importantly, there was no means of transportation.
(Rather than that, I must first confirm where this is.)
If she asked someone, they would tell her.
However...
(............It's a bit hard to ask.)
What can she say, the atmosphere of the town was a bit rough.
When she lived in District 3, she lived in a place with a rougher atmosphere.
After meeting Mika and starting to live together, she had been living in a very privileged environment.
That fact hit her anew.
(I've been protected this whole time...)
She had never forgotten that.
Mika had helped her even using means she did not desire.
He had protected her.
Realizing that again, tears threatened to spill.
Kistil wiped her eyes and looked around.
What should she do, how should she act?
No good ideas came to mind, and she was at a loss.
"Huh...?"
At that moment, a familiar signboard caught her eye.
"Adventurer Guild......."
A signboard she often saw when shopping on the Southeast Main Street of the capital.
Mika had told her, "That's the Adventurer Guild."
She had never been inside.
Kistil was drawn like a magnet, pulling Nerisfeene's hand to the front of the Adventurer Guild building.
"Ask an adventurer......."
If they had money, they could take that route.
But to make a request, money was needed.
Moreover, it was not a cheap amount.
More importantly, even if they made a request, whether an adventurer would accept it immediately was up to luck.
It was common for a request to be accepted ten days or a month later.
To get it accepted as quickly as possible, extra money was still necessary.
"What should I do......."
When Kistil muttered that, an adventurer came out of the guild.
An adventurer as burly as Yaroibarov carried a large sword on his back.
Kistil stared fixedly at the man coming out of the guild.
"Hm?"
The man also noticed Kistil's gaze and stared back.
"...Hmm? Ah... You are...?"
"Ah...!?"
When the man made a suspicious face, Kistil couldn't help but let out a loud voice.
"Mr. Yaroibarov's!"
"Ah!"
The man seemed to realize it too and looked a bit surprised.
"The kid who cooked at the inn!"
"That's right!"
That man was an adventurer who made Yaroibarov's inn in the capital his regular lodging.
An adventurer with a burly physique not to be outdone by Yaroibarov, carrying a Great Sword on his back.
His name seemed to be Sevvero.
To be honest, Kistil did not know Sevvero's name.
Since she was in charge of the kitchen, she hardly ever had the opportunity to talk directly to the inn's guests, having only seen him from the kitchen.
Even so, Sevvero remembered Kistil.
"When you suddenly quit, that guy Yaroibarov was unusually down."
"............I'm sorry."
After a simple self-introduction, naturally, the conversation turned to that.
"Well, I understand there were circumstances, but as an old man, didn't you want to rely on me?"
"............I'm sorry."
At Sevvero's words, Kistil could only feel apologetic.
She truly felt she had caused trouble back then and regretted that she should have consulted him properly.
However, back then, she thought doing anything was useless, and she was just crushed by powerlessness and despair, giving up.
Seeing Kistil's state, Sevvero gave a bitter smile.
"Sorry. Seems like I'm a bit preachy. ...Still, meeting here by chance is strange. Is this your hometown?"
"No, it is not...."
At that moment, Kistil remembered that they didn't know where they were either.
"I'm sorry. Um... where is this place?"
"Huh? Where... what do you mean by that?"
Sevvero made a suspicious face, and Kistil wondered how to explain.
If they just wanted to return to the capital, they could consult the Government Office about being kidnapped, and they might be allowed to return.
In that case, it would take time for the interrogation, and if she didn't speak well, she would have to tell them about Mika's... situation.
She wanted the kidnappers to be caught, and she would cooperate with the investigation however much later.
But right now, there was something more important to prioritize.
As Kistil worried about how to convey this, Sevvero's expression became somewhat severe.
"Is there some reason? This is the Viscountcy of Braikosloa. It's the town of Nuomono. It's a place near the border with the Am-Tast Trade Alliance."
"Viscountcy of Braikosloa......."
Even hearing that, Kistil did not know where the Viscountcy of Braikosloa was.
She knew the Am-Tast Trade Alliance was a country very far from the capital...
"...Judging by your look, asking won't help you know where it is? What's going on?"
Feeling something suspicious in Kistil's state, Sevvero asked about the situation.
If she had gotten lost in the city, that was one thing, but not knowing the town she was currently in was a bit unusual.
Kistil frowned and struggled to think.
But nothing came to mind, so she made up her mind and asked directly.
"Um... I will definitely pay the reward. Could you please help me find someone?"
"Huh? ...Finding someone?"
Sevvero's face became even more suspicious.
Kistil continued to stare at such Sevvero.
Sevvero made a troubled face, scratched his head vigorously, and finally let out a big sigh.
"Well, I've just finished a request and have my hands free, but... you know the reward, right? I'm expensive."
Sevvero was a B-rank adventurer, and the guild only accepted commissioned requests worth two million Rats or more.
It seemed that was the setting.
Still, there were a few commissioned requests a month, and basically, he was only doing commissioned work these days.
It seemed he had come to this town for such commissioned requests.
"Besides, even if you say you'll definitely pay."
There was no credit.
He seemed to be a child Yaroibarov was concerned about, but she had already quit the inn.
If she were still working, she might have been able to collect from Yaroibarov...
Sevvero crossed his arms and grunted, "Hmm."
"...Well, whether I accept or not aside, I'll listen to the story first. Who exactly are you looking for?"
"Mika, kun... a fourteen-year-old boy named Mika Noisheim."
"Mika... Noisheim?"
Sevvero muttered that and made a startled face.
"————Wait, don't tell me... the 'Dispeller'!?"
At Sevvero, who was surprised with wide eyes, Kistil nodded firmly.
Seeing such Kistil, Sevvero collapsed into a squat and covered his face with both hands.
"...Have mercy... Is today a bad day...."
Sevvero was muttering something to himself.
"............I heard that guy Yaroibarov liked the 'Dispeller'... Ah, come to think of it, I heard this kid had something to do with the 'Dispeller' too. ...I'm remembering all sorts of things. No, wait, wait... Does that mean something? If I refuse this, could I be cursed by a Cursing Mage? Even the Guild and the Church couldn't let it go for free...?"
Sevvero held his head and began to writhe in agony.
"U, um..."
When Kistil spoke, Sevvero lifted his face with a grim expression.
"............Do you have a lead...?"
He muttered that softly.
Even if asked for a direction, she didn't know at all.
But that was resolved immediately.
Fee possessed her and told her the direction where Mika was.
"Over there."
When Kistil pointed, Sevvero looked in that direction with a suspicious expression.
"...What's that? East? Or maybe northeast? Ah... In that direction, it's around Yaunasun? The Viscountcy of Orcosa."
"Yaunasun......."
She had heard it from Mika, but was he there?
Seeing Kistil's expression, which was not quite connecting, Sevvero raised one eyebrow.
"Is that wrong? However, beyond that, there's nothing left? The Baron Limpēre domain is a dead end in the kingdom, and there's nothing there. The capital, Kotontesse, isn't a great place either————."
"Kotontesse!"
Kistil couldn't help but let out a loud voice.
Kotontesse was next to Rish Village.
Surely, Mika had headed toward Rish Village.
"Is something happening in Kotontesse?"
"No! I think it's the neighboring village!"
Strength gathered in Kistil's voice.
She had a guess as to where Mika was going, and Kistil felt strength welling up within her.