Ruins adjacent to the lake.
There may be Shia in the abandoned city.
As we headed there, led by Roone, we rushed forward with even greater vigilance.
This is a city, no matter how you look at it.
Yeah.
Koga nodded to the sight of the ruins in front of him.
A decaying city adjacent to the lake.
I wonder if we have been struck by a catastrophe. Looking at the ruins, which show some signs of destruction, we step in with heightened vigilance.
Veena-san, I'm going to concentrate on sensing the magic power around you, so please step forward and make sure that you can sense it extensively.
I see.
"And do you recognize any sign of the devil?"
"No, not at all.... I don't mind if you yell at me like it's useless."
Ignoring Veena who said that while dyeing her cheeks, I was conscious that I would spread the magic sensing range around the team only in a circle so that I could cope with the raid.
"Roone, do you know anything?"
Amako, who was concentrating on predictive magic while riding on Bullin's back, spoke to Roone, who was sitting behind her.
Roone looked around with her neck tilted in confusion.
"...... I don't know, but I don't feel any sign of the monster at all"
You said there were monsters here, right?
"Yeah, but I'm not there. That's strange."
... So, something unusual is happening.
"Rabbit"
Did you feel anything, Nagi-san?
"Unfortunately, nothing."... but I don't like it. "
It's a strange thing. Me too.
There is no certainty.
It's a ruin lined with ruins without any weirdness, but it feels vaguely chilly.
……
"...... Nagi-san, what is it that makes my face even more steep when I hear that I have a bad feeling?"
"Huh!? No, I can guess what you think!"But definitely, I don't think that you are easily involved in the case!? "
No, you're falling to talk, aren't you?
Although I am aware of it.
... hm? Speaking of which, isn't there any Nea who was on your shoulder just now?
"Wow, the site of the ethnic settlement in the monster realm!"Elves and demonic architecture are also used here! "
"Look, Hannah. There's a big pit on the ground."
"Does this feel like a waterway was originally running here?" It's interesting, isn't it? "
Looking at the sound of her voice, she saw the two wicked girls who were exuberant while observing the ruins.
"... ahh, Usato"
Yeah, I'll be careful not to squat.
Hannah and Nea were so excited about the historic ruins that their heads hurt.
I know that intellectual curiosity is stimulating, but I want you to feel a little more nervous.
For now, we'll be on the lookout for this ruin.
Well then, let's split it up into three parts.
"Yeah. I can fight, Koga, even if I break up with Nagi-san..."
I, Keira, Amaco, Rune, Nea.
Korga, Veena, Wal, Sein.
Nagi, Hannah, Nono, El, Kevin
Let's split up into three teams.
Balance the sensing and combat faces, and be aware of the distance you can run as soon as there is a disturbance.
As far as my team is concerned... there's Roone and the closest Amako and Keira together.
Well then, let's go.
"Don't get me wrong. It's not like anyone can yell at me!"
"Hey, Rabbit, I don't need this, so can I do it over there?"
I don't think I need it either.
"Hyeon! You know so much about what you want...!"
When she smiled at Veena, who was making a troublesome move, she began to twitch with a smile.
I didn't need it, but I was the magic sensor, so I just wanted her to support Korga, who didn't have the ability to find enemies.
That said, I'll satisfy her with what she seems to be happy to say, because it's going to be a tedious thing to say again.
"Thank you very much." Large Amako-san
"Ughh..."
...... I saw Nagi-san somehow being beaten by Hannah-san with a bodyblow of words...... Yeah, I guess it's okay.
Hannah was powerful at phantom magic, and Nagi was strong.
Even if something happens, we can deal with it in a stable manner.
●
What I found out from my exploration was that this ruin was relatively new... It was strange, but it seemed to have been destroyed about a hundred years ago.
The people who were chased away from their places of residence were scattered and led their lives.
It was Nea's view that the descendants of the scattered people would become the runes...
"It seems that this is my hometown..."
Don't you feel it?
"... honestly, my home is in the woods."
Roone was looking at the ruins.
Even if you don't feel it, there's still something you might not understand the emotion well enough.
“What would you do if you met Shia?”
"... I don't know. If you're in pain, I want to help you."
Regardless of the dark magic, Rune was probably nostalgic for Shia.
I don't know why it's because I'm someone other than my real parents, but I think it's a different emotion than obsession.
"Shia and you must be friends."
My mother taught me how to say the same thing.
"What did you teach me?"
Amako's question made Roone look forward to it.
"Being together is fun and reassuring..."
You were such a kind mother...
In response to Keira's murmur, I turn to her cloak. [M]
Keira's parents tried to trick her into preying on the monster.
Knowing that, I subtly try to care for her, and Keira replies in the cloak, "I'm fine."
I have Graefe and... Usato.
Why do you want to ask me that, but is that it?
Do I look like a brother or an uncle I can rely on?
"Shia is just like me. I'm all alone."
Well then, I'll have to let you stay with me.
"... yes..."
Korikori, Roone nodded.
She's an honest girl. Maybe that's why Shia felt safe with us.
"Now..."
"Nea, have you noticed anything?"
"There were a few."
Nea, who had been observing the city from the sky earlier, came down on my shoulder.
“The first thing to think about is what calamity has struck you.”
"Like a monster attack?" It's impossible here, isn't it? "
No, monsters are unlikely.
What, low?
Me and Amako tilted their necks and Nea pointed towards the edge of this ruined city.
It's pretty decaying over there, but there are remnants of stone pillars and walls, right?
"Hmm? Oh, I'm sure there is."
"Well, it's not the inside of the city, it's the outside."Not just some of them, but most of them. "
... oh, I see.
If you were attacked and destroyed by a monster, the wall would have fallen or been broken inside.
"Yeah, and... rabbit, go up to the sky."
You mean, fly?
"All right. Bulllin, a little Amaco and a little Roone, please."
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Leave Burling to the ground and fly with your cloak's abilities.
When it reached a certain height, Nea made a stop.
The city is lined with decaying ruins.
"You can go around here." Take a look at how the rabbits, the keelers, and the ruins were destroyed, as well as the remains of the outer walls and stone pillars that I just described. ”
”Hmm... is there something wrong with it?”
I looked down at the ruined city from the sky, as Nea told me.
A city without trees and with white, decaying ruins.
Most of the exterior walls that would have been expensively constructed to combat monsters would have been broken...?
“Is the destruction coming from one direction or the other?”
Oh, sure. All the fallen buildings and the broken ones are falling in the same direction!
That's it.
Looking in the opposite direction, there is a large lake.
So the lake was flooded and the city was swallowed up for a while?
"That explains it..."
No, wait.
If you look closely, the shape of this city is unnatural, isn't it?
It's more like... adjacent to the lake.
Is half sinking?
Have you noticed?
"... let's check it downstairs"
Once you understand, you will descend to the ground and rendezvous with the Amakos to the lake side of the city.
This is the border, isn't it?
It's deteriorating over time, but it certainly looks like half of the city has sunk into the lake.
Amako nods as she sees the ruins decaying halfway between the lake and the city.
... the water looks beautiful, but the bottom is pretty deep.
"The city that sank into the lake."It's almost like I'm talking about an illusion city or something like that... "
I would have been excited if it hadn't involved the power of demons and demon kings, but it wouldn't have happened.
Rather, I'd like to show senpai this mystery and romantic situation.
The problem is that there's nothing left in this ruin at the moment.
"I think there's definitely something... do you feel something, Rabbit?"
"Hmm..."
While speaking to Nea's words, she had an honest feeling.
"I have a bad feeling about this."
"There's something about this."
There's definitely something there.
”I-I have to tighten my head......”
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
That's why you should stop fighting when I have a bad feeling about it.
Roone is honestly attracted to Amako's reaction.
Anyway, let's meet up with everyone and share information.
Yeah, right.
Koga and Nagi-san might have found something too.
In the meantime, let's get the camp ready after we share the information.
●
I tried to share information, but I didn't find anything other than what we found about the city.
As a result, the city itself was nothing but decaying ruins.
It was a place of great historical value to archaeologists, but it had nothing to do with the power of the Hate Demon King or the destination of Shia.
Well then, let's dive in for now.
"All right, let's go."
"I don't think so."
Nagi stops me from putting my index finger on Koga's proposal.
In response, Korga and I protest in the strongest possible terms.
"No, no, Kannagi-san." In the meantime, we need to investigate this suspicious lake. "
"Koga is right. Rest assured, I'm good at holding my breath as part of my training.”
"That's not the problem!?... I don't know what's in the lake."What if there's a large monster or demon trap? "
Indeed, what Nagi-san said made sense.
But what should we do?
Looking at the lake doesn't change the situation.
Hmm, when I was worried, Nea raised her wings.
"Well then, why don't you just wrap the rabbit around a rope or something and throw it into the lake?"If it seems dangerous, you can just pull it up with Kannagi and Koga. "
It's okay!?
"... I see."
"I'm not convinced either!"
The rope can be solved by combining Korga's dark magic, and the oxygen problem can be solved by Keira's dark magic.
I was troubled by the unexpected proposal, but Nagi-san stopped crying halfway, so I turned him down.
"If so, there's a way to dive into Koga's counterpart and try to use it as a pseudo-bait..."
"My counterpart will become a weapon, so if you think about it, you can become a fish, right?"
Koga-kun, you've completely cut this off, right?
Dark magic is going to change in this place, isn't it?
Nea and Hannah said something, but for now, let's have Korga recon.
If you eat something, you'll get a harvest, and if you don't, you'll be safe and you'll be able to dive.
If that's the case, we'll get ready to investigate the lake---
"Ahh!!"
Amako?
Amako, who was nearby without warning, jumped on my back like he was jumping from Bullin.
Instead of being confused by her clinging to her neck forcefully, she noticed that something unusual had happened.
Nea, the magic spell of resistance to the demonic power!
The voice of Amako clinging to me.
Immediately after that, I felt some kind of magic interference in my magic sensing.
Usato-san! It's the devil's magic power!!
At the same time as Veena's voice, which was slightly delayed, it was the magic of the dense stacked color that overflowed into the surroundings.
The faces that were immune to the powerful demonic powers landed on the ground with their faces covered.
The demonic power that confuses and paralyzes people's minds.
It sprang up from somewhere in the city and surrounded us as a morning mist appeared in the lake.